Intercultural Challenges to Consider When Designing Pharmaceutical and Behavioral Interventions in Health Services Research

There are unique considerations for pharmaceutical and health services research that need to be considered when conducting research across different social and cultural settings. Culture as a concept in health and research is important as it affects how people interpret and respond to health and illness and their communications. This is particularly pertinent in pharmaceutical and health services research that involves interventions, as health, illness, and treatments are not associated with “blank slates” or neutrality; rather individuals often hold preexisting beliefs that are shaped by cultural influences that affect how they respond to the health intervention. This entry examines what intercultural factors should be considered, how these factors can be identified, and how these factors can be addressed in health services research when designing interventions that aim to change and/or improve health outcomes. One way to conceptualize this is to consider the Three Components of Behavioural Change (3CBC) which will be used an example framework to develop and culturally adapt health interventions. We will illustrate these using our experiences of conducting health research and discuss specific impacts of intercultural challenges, drawing on examples from research.