The study of the lay meanings of health has shown that good health can have a variety
of meanings and that thèse meanings can influence health behaviour. Health and
illness are subjective expériences which are determined by the interrelations of
individual, social and cultural factors. The influence of thèse factors on the
expérience of CHD have implications for secondary prévention programs such as
cardiac rehabilitation and the capacity of thèse programs to address the increasing
importance of psychosocial factors in CHD. The Common Sensé Model (CSM) of
health and illness, proposed by Howard Leventhal and colleagues, provides a dynamic
model for the understanding of health and illness behaviours which can contribute to a
better understanding of thèse social and cultural factors. Perceptions of health and
illness are especially important when considering the health behaviours of culturallydiverse
groups, such as Italian-speaking cardiac patients. This thesis explores the lay
meanings of health and the illness perceptions of Italian-speaking cardiac patients
who have participated in a language-specific cardiac rehabilitation program. Semistructured
interviews with Italian cardiac patients and health professionals were
conducted. Findings established a priori .and a posteriori thèmes and the thèmes
served to demonstrate how the response to cardiac illness was influenced by the
Personal expériences and broader psychosocial contexts of the participants.
Implications for traditional cardiac rehabilitation programs include the potential
benefïts of addressing the psychosocial needs of culturally-diverse cardiac patients,
which can accommodate the subjective meanings that they make of their illness
expérience and of their broader health and social needs.