HEALTH BEHAVIOUR THEORIES
The most successful public health programs and initiatives are based on an understanding of health behaviours and the context in which they occur. Therefore, interventions to improve health behaviour can be best designed with an understanding of relevant theories of behaviour change and the ability to use them skillfully.
2. THEORY OF PLANNED BEHAVIOUR
THEORY OF PLANNED BEHAVIOUR
The Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) developed by Icek Ajzen, 1991, is a psychological framework that predicts human behavior. It suggests that people's beliefs about whether they can perform a behavior (behavioral beliefs), their beliefs about the outcomes of the behavior (outcome beliefs), and their beliefs about what others think they should do (normative beliefs) influence their intentions, which in turn influence their actual behaviors. The theory was proposed by Icek Ajzen in 1985 as an extension of the Theory of Reasoned Action.
The Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) is based on several key assumptions:
1. Behavioral Intention: The most immediate determinant of behavior is a person's intention to perform that behavior. Intentions are influenced by the person's attitude toward the behavior, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control.
2. Attitude Toward Behavior: A person's attitude toward a specific behavior is determined by the individual's beliefs about the outcomes of performing the behavior and the evaluation of those outcomes.
3. Subjective Norms: Subjective norms refer to the perceived social pressure to perform or not perform a behavior. It is influenced by the individual's beliefs about what important others think they should do and the motivation to comply with these perceived expectations.
4. Perceived Behavioral Control: Perceived behavioral control reflects the individual's perception of the ease or difficulty of performing the behavior. It is influenced by factors such as resources, skills, and obstacles.
5. Behavioral Beliefs, Normative Beliefs, and Control Beliefs: These beliefs underlie attitude, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control, respectively. They are the foundation of the TPB and shape the individual's overall intention to perform a behavior.
6. Behavioral, Normative, and Control Beliefs are Modifiable: According to the TPB, these beliefs can be influenced and changed through interventions, which can in turn affect behavioral intentions and behaviors.
These assumptions form the basis of the Theory of Planned Behavior and guide its application in predicting and understanding human behavior.