1. Consider the definition above. What might be good places to start your search for information?
Try: health/medical and psychology resources (journals, books, article databases)
2. Although the term psychoneuroimmunology was introduced in 1991, there were several researchers exploring this topic before that time. This means that you might have to use alternate keywords, such as psychoimmunology when you search in the databases.
According to the American Psychological Association (APA), the term psychoneuroimmunology was first introduced in 1991. APA defines psychoneuroimmunology as:
The study of the interrelationship among immune responses, psychological processes, and the nervous system. The term is used for the scientific discipline or the psychoneuroimmunologic processes themselves.
Step One: Locating biographical information about your pioneer.
Start with a search engine, such as Google. Many of the pioneers are current researchers in the field and may have their own personal website, a profile from the university or other place of employment, or an account in a scholar or research group, such as ResearchGate, Google Scholar, or PubMed, among many others.
Search example: "Dean Ornish" interview
Search example: "Dean Ornish" biography
It might be difficult to locate biographical information without consulting some commercial (.com) or organizational (.org) websites. Therefore, try your search with and without those sites to view the results of both. Consult several sites before using the information from only one or two.
Search example: "Dean Ornish" interview -.com -.org
Search example: "Dean Ornish" biography -.com -.org
Step Two: Locate information that describes important contributions your pioneer made to mind-body health research.
Start with a search in article databases. This is where you will find credible information, including books published by a university press and peer-reviewed journals.