Disentangling behavioral intention and behavioral expectation

Social psychologists have extensively researched behavioral intention and its relation to future behavior, usually within the framework of M. Fishbein and I. Ajzen's (1975, Belief, attitude, intention and behavior: An introduction to theory and research, Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley) theory of reasoned action. However, the field has confounded two separate constructs while investigating intention: behavioral intention (BI) and what P. R. Warshaw, B. H. Sheppard, and J. Hartwick (in press, in R. Bagozzi (Ed.), Advances in marketing communication, Greenwich, CT: JAI Press) have coined behavioral expectation (BE), which is the individual's self-prediction of his or her future behavior. In this paper we define both constructs and explain how they differ in terms of the processes by which they are formed, their roles in determining behavior, and their utilities as behavioral predictors. We propose that behavioral expectation is the more accurate overall predictor since many common behaviors are unreasoned (i.e., mindless or habitual) behaviors, goal-type actions, or behaviors where the individual expects his or her intention to change in a foresseable manner. These are all cases where present intention (BI) is not the direct determinant of behavior but where the individual may be capable of appraising whatever additional determinants exist and of including them within his or her behavioral expectation. A study (N = 197) is reported in which student subjects received either a BE (n = 113) or a BI (n = 84) version of a questionnaire pertaining to their performance of 18 common behaviors. Overall, behavioral expectation was the better predictor of self-reported performance.     

Motivation is not enough: prediction of risk behavior following diagnosis of coronary heart disease from the theory of planned behavior.

Perceived behavioral control (PBC) and intention, the proximal predictors from the theory of planned behavior (TPB), were used to predict cardiovascular risk behaviors in 597 patients 1 year after diagnosis with coronary heart disease. The outcome measures were self-report measures of exercise plus objective measures of fitness (distance walked in 6 min) and cotinine-confirmed smoking cessation. In multivariate analyses incorporating both PBC and intention, PBC predicted exercise, distance walked, and smoking cessation, but intention was not a reliable independent predictor of any health behavior measured. Thus, the effective theoretical component of the TPB was PBC. Similar predictions could derive from social-cognitive theory. In coronary patients, behavioral change needs to address issues of action implementation rather than motivational factors alone.     

Application of a modified health belief model to hiv preventive behavioral intentions among gay and bisexual men

Abstract

The utility of a modified health belief model (Janz and Becker, 1984) for predicting the intention to use condoms was tested in a study among gay and bisexual men. The model explained a reasonable amount of variance. It was found that younger men's decision to have safe sex was guided by factors other than those that influenced older men. Among younger men, the intention to use a condom was positively related to the relative number of persons with AIDS in their social environment (cues to action) and to the perceived benefits of HIV preventive behavior. Among older men, this behavioral intention was much more determined by their perception of the prevalence of HIV and by their perception of their vulnerability to HIV infection. These findings are important because they may partly explain the recent increase in AIDS-risk behavior among young gay and bisexual men. The discussion focuses on these findings and on the implications for interventions aimed at promoting safe sex.     

Predicting adolescent health complaints by personality and Behaviors

Abstract

In a sample of 97 male adolescents, individual differences in health complaints were predicted by personality traits and by self-reported health/risk behaviors. Anxiety and loneliness were measured at Times 1 and 2, and health locus of control, various behaviors and health complaints were assessed at the end of the two-year study. A causal model was specified, employing anxiety and loneliness as distal predictors, health locus of control and behaviors as proximal predictors of health complaints. It turned out that anxiety was the most powerful single predictor, and that loneliness exerted a direct effect on health locus of control and behaviors and an indirect effect on health complaints. Risk behavior as well as health behavior were related to complaints. Social integration facilitated not only health behavior but also risk behavior.     

Persuasion as Reinforcement: Strengthening the Pro-Environmental Attitude-Behavior Relationship through Ecotainment Programming

This study investigated whether the effects of viewing pro-environmental messages within a narrative context affected intention to perform ecofriendly behaviors through the accessibility of participants’ (N = 332) environmental attitudes. One week after an online pretest, participants viewed one of two television clips that either included or did not include pro-environmental messages. Participants then completed attitude accessibility latency measures and reported behavioral intent to perform several ecofriendly behaviors. Reinforcement of pro-environmental attitudes by the pro-environmental messages occurred through the accessibility of the attitudes, which, in turn, predicted intention to engage in the depicted ecofriendly behaviors. Consistent with a category activation hypothesis, accessible attitudes toward the specific behaviors depicted in the program predicted the accessibility of attitudes toward ecofriendly behaviors that were not depicted or explicitly discussed in the program, and these accessible attitudes predicted intention to engage in ecological behaviors not depicted in the program. These findings are a first demonstration that portrayals of specific behaviors in a narrative television program can increase behavioral intention for related behaviors not shown in the program and that these effects occur through the activation of existing, positive attitudes.     

Choice Sets and Choice Intentions

Abstract

Researchers have widely accepted the argument that the Fishbein model generally predicts better if the intention measure corresponds to the predicted behavior with respect to target, action, context, and time frame. Although the model is routinely applied in situations involving choice among multiple alternatives, researchers frequently overlook the need to measure intentions so that they correspond to the multiple target behaviors that constitute the subject'S salient choice set. The present study was designed to demonstrate the effect of choice set on the measurement of behavioral intentions of American students. The data support the argument that Fishbein'S intention measure is quite sensitive to the choice set involved, perhaps one reason why intention measures sometimes fail to predict behavior accurately.     

Distortions in reports of health behaviors: The time span effect and illusory supefuority

Abstract

The occurreace of a time span effect and illusory superiority in self reports of health behaviors was tested. It was found that people report proportionally lower frequencies of both healthy and unhealthy behaviors if they give frequency estimations over a longer as compared to a shorter time span (time span effect). In addition, they report lower frequencies of unhealthy behaviors, and higher frequencies of healthy behaviors for themselves than for the average other (illusory superiority). For healthy but not for unhealthy behaviors a stronger illusory superiority effect was obtained in frequency reports for behavioral expectations as compared to past behaviors. Potential explanations and implications for subjective measurements of health behavior are discussed.     

Other- versus self-focus and risky health behavior: the case of HIV/AIDS

We examined the relationships of other-focus and self-focus with risky health behaviors among HIV+ individuals. Participants who were recruited by an AIDS advocacy organization completed anonymous questionnaires that included measures of other-focus (i.e. empathic concern and perspective-taking) and self-focus (i.e. personal distress and exaggerated internal control); direct measures of concern about the consequences of HIV/AIDS for the self, close others, and society; and a measure of willingness to engage in HIV/AIDS risk behaviors. As predicted, other-focus measures were generally associated with less, and self-focus measures with greater, willingness to engage in risky behavior. However, concern about the consequences of HIV/AIDS for close others was similar to self-focus and was associated with greater willingness to engage in risky behavior. These results are consistent with the notion that prevention efforts focusing on the consequences of HIV/AIDS – and perhaps other communicable diseases – might be more effective if they highlighted the consequences of the disease for society.     

Smoking,depression, & stress: predictors of fibromyalgia health status

The purpose of the present study was to examine the effects of smoking, stress, and depression on fibromyalgia health status. Fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) is a chronic musculoskeletal pain condition that negatively affects health status. Health status is not only affected by the constellation of physical symptoms, but also by mood symptoms, stress levels, and patient behaviors (e.g. smoking). Participants were 491 individuals with a physician’s diagnosis of FMS. They completed self-report measures of their current levels of depression, stress, the number of cigarettes smoked per day, and health status. A linear regression analysis was conducted to determine whether these measures predicted FMS health status. All three measures predicted worse health status, predicting 51.5% of the variance in health status. However, it is important to evaluate and treat more than just the physical symptoms of FMS. Attention should also be paid to mental health status and to engagement in unhealthy behaviors in order to reduce their effects on FMS health status. Future researchers should design and evaluate interventions that target these modifiable risk factors to determine the extent to which they could improve health outcomes.     

Seeking help when transgender: Exploring the difference in mental and physical health seeking behaviors between transgender and cisgender individuals in Ireland

Abstract

Background: While there is growing awareness of the need to support the physical and mental wellbeing of transgender people, some may be reluctant to seek help from healthcare professionals. Little is understood about the mechanisms that influence help-seeking behavior in this group.

Aims: This study aimed to compare transgender and cisgender participants in their likelihood to seek help for both physical and mental health conditions, and to explore whether this help-seeking behavior is predicted by a range of sociodemographic and psychological variables.

Methods: 123 participants living in Ireland (cisgender= 67; transgender= 56) completed a questionnaire which included demographic questions, as well as measures of optimism (LOT-R), self-esteem (RSES), psychological distress (GHQ-12), attitudes towards seeking psychological help (ATSPPH-SF), and attitudes towards seeking help for a physical health problem (Attitudes Towards Seeking Medical Help Scale- Action/Intervention subscale). Associations between predictor variables and mental and physical health seeking were explored using correlation analysis and stepwise regressions.

Results: Transgender participants were less likely to seek help for a physical health issue than cisgender participants, but did not differ in mental health help-seeking behaviors. Results suggest that this may be due to differences in optimism, self-esteem and psychological distress. Transgender participants had significantly lower optimism and self-esteem, which were two factors linked to poorer physical health seeking behaviors. Optimism also emerged as a significant predictor in mental health seeking behaviors.

Discussion: The lack of a significant difference for mental health help-seeking between the transgender and cisgender participants is encouraging, as it suggests that there is less stigma surrounding mental illness than expected, however findings also contradict previous findings suggesting that physical health is less stigmatized. This could be due to stigma relating to gender-specific healthcare and suggests that healthcare professionals should acknowledge the specific healthcare needs and concerns among transgender individuals.     

Approach and avoidance motivation as predictors of pro-relationship behaviors

Pro-relationship behaviors, such as willingness to sacrifice, are assumed to be driven by both approach and avoidance motivation. However, this assumption has not been directly tested. In two studies, we examined how individual differences in approach and avoidance motivation predicted pro-relationship behavior. In Study 1, avoidance (but not approach) motivation uniquely predicted sacrificial behavior. In Study 2, sacrificing was uniquely predicted by avoidance motivation, whereas accommodation was uniquely predicted by approach motivation. These data suggest that although both sacrificing and accommodation are pro-relationship behaviors, they are driven by different motivational systems, which in turn may result in different long-term relational outcomes.     

Evaluation of a behavioral measure of risk taking: the Balloon Analogue Risk Task (BART)

The present study (N = 86) sought to evaluate a laboratory-based behavioral measure of risk taking (the Balloon Analogue Risk Task; BART) and to test associations between this measure and self-report measures of risk-related constructs as well as self-reported real-world risk behaviors. The BART evidenced sound experimental properties, and riskiness on the BART was correlated with scores on measures of sensation seeking, impulsivity, and deficiencies in behavioral constraint. Also, riskiness on the BART was correlated with the self-reported occurrence of addictive, health, and safety risk behaviors, with the task accounting for variance in these behaviors beyond that accounted for by demographics and self-report measures of risk-related constructs. These results indicate that the BART may be a useful tool in the assessment of risk taking.     

Attitude,perceived behavioral control,and intention to adopt risky behaviors

The theory of planned behavior (TPB, Ajzen, 1985) has proved its efficiency in predicting different behaviors among road users (Sheeran & Orbell, 2000). The present study examined the TPB factors explaining risk taking among vulnerable road users (e.g., cyclists). We presumed that attitude, social norms, and perceived behavioral control (PBC) would predict cyclists’ intention to adopt a risky behavior in two traffic contexts considered as risk-conducive (i.e., run the red-light, turn left).Participants (N = 224, M_age = 23.34) filled in an online scenario-based questionnaire describing two traffic situations conducive to risk taking and including measures for cyclists’ intentions to adopt risky behaviors in these specific contexts, TPB factors, and self-perceived efficacy.TPB factors explained 49% and 65% of the variance in the intention to cross the red light, respectively the intention to turn left, with positive attitude and high PBC as the best predictors. Implications of the results were discussed.     

Social-Cognitive Factors in Changing Health-Related Behaviors

Changing health-related behaviors requires two separate processes that involve motivation and volition, respectively. First, an intention to change is developed, in part on the basis of self-beliefs. Second, the change must be planned, initiated, and maintained, and relapses must be managed; self-regulation plays a critical role in these processes. Social-cognition models of health behavior change address these two processes. One such model, the health action process approach, is explicitly based on the assumption that two distinct phases need to be studied longitudinally, one phase that leads to a behavioral intention and another that leads to the actual behavior. Particular social-cognitive variables may play different roles in the two stages; perceived self-efficacy is the only predictor that seems to be equally important in the two phases.     

Social Cognitive Determinants of Blood Donation

This article reports two studies designed to test a theory of planned behavior-based model of blood donation. In Study 1 ( n = 136), self-efficacy and self-identity accounted for unique variance in behavioral intention. Study 2 ( n = 172) extended Study 1: self-efficacy, perceived control over behavior (PCB), self-identity, and moral norm were all independently predictive of intention; behavioral intention predicted a proxy measure of behavioral enaction. Both studies provided evidence to support a distinction between self-efficacy and PCB, and for the inclusion of self-identity and moral norm into the model. Belief-based measures discriminated intenders from nonintenders, and beliefs that accounted for unique variance in self-efficacy and PCB were identified. The findings are discussed in relation to using models such as the theory of planned behavior to intervene in social and health behaviors.     

The effects of message framing on behavioral prevalence assumptions

Based on attribution theory and the logic of conversational norms, we predicted that image‐based health communications can alter prevalence estimates for health behaviors. In two studies, participants were exposed either to a positively‐framed or negatively‐framed communication advocating for specific health behaviors. As predicted, participants who read a health communication rated healthy behaviors as less common when positive attributes were associated with healthy choices than when negative attributes were associated with unhealthy choices. The second study revealed that this pattern was most pronounced among participants who reported initial uncertainty about behavioral norms. These findings suggest that positively‐framed influence attempts can promote prevalence assumptions that work against the influence attempt. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

High school students' perceptions of AIDS risk: realistic appraisal or motivated denial?

We examined perceptions of risk for acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) in 296 high school students living in or near a major urban center. We hypothesized that students with a dispositional tendency to deny threat would be more likely to misperceive their risk of contracting AIDS. Results indicated that study participants, overall, used their behaviors as a basis for assessing personal risk in the sense that they perceived higher risk when their behavior was in fact riskier. However, this relation did not hold for those students classified as repressors on a repression-sensitization scale; repressors' perceptions of absolute (but not comparative) risk were negatively correlated with degree of behavioral risk. In a secondary analysis, perceived absolute risk was found to be a significant predictor of intention to change AIDS-risk behaviors. This study provides support for a motivational interpretation of perceived invulnerability and has implications for the development of models of health behavior change.     

Internal health locus of control predicts willingness to track health behaviors online and with smartphone applications

Given rising technology use across all demographic groups, digital interventions offer a potential strategy for increasing access to health information and care. Research is lacking on identifying individual differences that impact willingness to use digital interventions, which may affect patient engagement. Health locus of control, the amount of control an individual believes they have over their own health, may predict willingness to use mobile health (mHealth) applications (‘apps’) and online trackers. A cross-sectional study (n = 276) was conducted to assess college students’ health locus of control beliefs and willingness to use health apps and online trackers. Internal and powerful other health locus of control beliefs predicted willingness to use health apps and online trackers while chance health locus of control beliefs did not. Individuals with internal and powerful other health locus of control beliefs are more willing than those with chance health locus of control beliefs to utilize a form of technology to monitor or change health behaviors. Health locus of control is an easy-to-assess patient characteristic providers can measure to identify which patients are more likely to utilize mHealth apps and online trackers.     

Children’s Thinking about HIV/AIDS Causality,Prevention, and Social Interaction

Guided by both a Piagetian and a naïve theories perspective on disease concepts, this study examined children’s thinking about HIV/AIDS, with special attention to its development, coherence, and sociocultural correlates. It examined age differences among Mexican-American and Euro-American children aged 8 to 13 (N?=?158) in both Piagetian level of causal understanding (independent of correctness) and the causal knowledge central to an intuitive theory of AIDS (knowledge of risk behaviors and of the viral disease agent). It explored theoretical coherence in terms of implications of causal understanding and causal knowledge for knowledge of how to prevent AIDS and willingness to interact with people who have it. As predicted, scores on all measures increased significantly with age, and causal knowledge of risk factors exceeded knowledge of corresponding prevention rules. In multiple regression analyses, causal knowledge of both risk factors and the viral disease agent predicted knowledge of prevention and willingness to interact, even with age and other measures controlled. Prevention knowledge predicted willingness to interact even better, whereas the Piagetian measure of casual understanding did not predict either prevention knowledge or willingness to interact. Ethnic group differences were not evident but parent education was related to greater viral knowledge and willingness to interact. The results suggest a good deal of coherence in children’s thinking about this disease while also suggesting the desirability of making explicit the implications of critical causal information about an unfamiliar disease for preventing the disease without stigmatizing those who have it.     

COVID-19 pandemic impact on family life and exacerbated emotional and behavioral health among preschool children: A longitudinal study

Background/ObjectiveThis study aimed to examine associations of the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on family life with emotional and behavioral health among preschool children.MethodsA longitudinal study including 1595 preschool children aged 3–6 years and their families was conducted in Anhui Province. The linear regression was applied to examine associations between the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on family life and emotional and behavioral health.ResultsResults of the multivariable linear regression indicated that the severe impact of COVID-19 pandemic on family life was significantly associated with more sleep problems, poor dietary behavior habits, more anxiety symptoms, and more problematic behaviors; and these effects exhibited gender and age differences.ConclusionsThe severe impact of COVID-19 pandemic on family life significantly increased the risk for exacerbated emotional and behavioral health among preschool children. It is considered vital to identify risk factors for vulnerable families and then to implement precise interventions when necessary for emotional and behavioral health of children in these families.