The theory of planned behavior and healthy eating.

Application of the theory of planned behavior (TPB) to healthy eating in 144 health promotion clinic attendees is reported. Respondents completed self-report TPB measures after the clinic (Time 1) and 6 months later (Time 2) with a measure of perceived past behavior. Intention stability was assessed on Time 1-2 differences. Six years later (Time 3), respondents completed measures of healthy eating intentions and behavior. Intentions were predicted by attitudes, perceived behavioral control, and perceived past behavior (cross-sectionally). Healthy eating behavior (Time 3) was predicted from intentions (Time 2). As intention stability increased, intentions and perceived past behavior became stronger and weaker predictors of behavior, respectively. Implications for understanding health cognitions in long-term performance of health behavior are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Determinants of exercise intention and behavior during and after phase 2 cardiac rehabilitation: An application of the theory of planned behavior.

Objective: To evaluate the theory of planned behavior (TPB) as a framework for understanding exercise motivation during and after Phase 2 cardiac rehabilitation (CR). Design and Participants: Patients (57 men and 24 women) completed a TPB questionnaire that included attitudes, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control, and exercise intentions pre- and post-Phase 2 CR. Results: During Phase 2 CR, regression analyses indicated that attitude, subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control (PBC) explained 38% of the variance in exercise intention while intention explained 23% of the variance in exercise adherence. At postrehabilitation follow-up, attitudes, subjective norm, and PBC explained 51 % of the variance in exercise intention while intention explained 23% of the variance in exercise adherence. Conclusion: The TPB is a useful framework for understanding exercise intentions and behavior both during and after Phase 2 CR. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Utility of the theories of reasoned action and planned behavior for predicting physician behavior: A prospective analysis.

The utility of the theory of reasoned action (TRA) and the theory of planned behavior (TPB) for prospectively predicting physicians' delivery of preventive services was compared. Primary care physicians (N?=?765) completed 2 mail surveys at periods 6 months apart. The addition of perceived behavioral control to the TRA model significantly increased the variance accounted for in behavioral intention and subsequent behavior (p R?=?.52, p R?=?.63, p     

Causal ordering of physical self-concept and exercise behavior: Reciprocal effects model and the influence of physical education teachers.

Does prior physical self-concept influence subsequent exercise behavior? On the basis of a large sample of physical education classes (2,786 students, 200 classes, 67 teachers) collected early (Time 1) and late (Time 2) in the school year, findings support a reciprocal effects model in which prior physical self-concept and exercise behavior both influence subsequent physical self-concept and exercise behavior. Whereas variables from the theory of planned behavior (TOPB; behavioral intentions, perceived behavioral control, exercise attitudes) also contributed to the prediction of subsequent exercise behavior, the effect of prior physical self-concept was significant for subsequent outcomes after controlling these variables, suggesting that the TOPB should be supplemented with self-concept measures. On the basis of multilevel models, there were systematic differences in these variables for students taught by different teachers that generalized over time and across different classes taught by the same teacher. Support for the reciprocal effects model was robust. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

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. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Using the theory of planned behavior to predict leisure time physical activity among people with chronic kidney disease.

Objective: To evaluate the utility of the theory of planned behavior (TPB) for explaining and predicting leisure time physical activity (LTPA) in the chronic kidney disease population. Study Design: Prospective correlational design. Participants: Eighty men (n=52) and women (n=28) with chronic kidney disease (mean serum creatinine=310.55 [±148.75] μmol/L). Method: Baseline interview assessing attitude, subjective norm, perceived behavioral control, and intention to engage in LTPA. Telephone interview 1 week later assessing frequency and intensity of LTPA. Results: Perceived behavioral control (β=.69) but not attitude (β=.17) or subjective norm (β=.02) was associated with intention to engage in LTPA. Intention (β=.53) but not perceived behavioral control (β=.18) predicted LTPA. Conclusion: These findings provide partial support for the utility of the TPB for explaining LTPA among people with chronic kidney disease. Additional research is required to determine if targeting perceived behavioral control may be an effective means for increasing LTPA in this population. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Examining social-cognitive determinants of intention and physical activity among Black and White adolescent girls using structural equation modeling.

Structural equation modeling was used to evaluate components within the theories of reasoned action (TRA), planned behavior (TPB), and self-efficacy (SET) for understanding moderate and vigorous physical activity among 1,797 Black and White adolescent girls. Modest to strong support was provided for components of TPB and SET; weak support was provided for components of TRA. Perceived behavioral control was related to vigorous physical activity. Self-efficacy was related to moderate and vigorous physical activity, and it accounted for the effect of intention on physical activity. The observed relationships were similar between Black and White girls. Self-efficacy and perceived behavioral control are independent influences on physical activity among Black and White adolescent girls and warrant study as potential mediators in physical activity interventions. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Using the theory of planned behavior to predict gambling behavior.

Gambling is an important public health concern. To better understand gambling behavior, we conducted a classroom-based survey that assessed the role of the theory of planned behavior (TPB; i.e., intentions, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control, and attitudes) in past-year gambling and gambling frequency among college students. Results from this research support the utility of the TPB to explain gambling behavior in this population. Specifically, in TPB models to predict gambling behavior, friend and family subjective norms and perceived behavioral control predicted past-year gambling, and friend and family subjective norms, attitudes, and perceived behavioral control predicted gambling frequency. Intention to gamble mediated these relationships. These findings suggest that college-based responsible gambling efforts should consider targeting misperceptions of approval regarding gambling behavior (i.e., subjective norms), personal approval of gambling behavior (i.e., attitudes), and perceived behavioral control to better manage gambling behavior in various situations. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

How useful are the stages of change for targeting interventions? Randomized test of a brief intervention to reduce smoking.

Objective: To see whether the stages of change are useful for targeting a brief intervention to reduce smoking based on implementation intentions. A second objective was to rule out demand characteristics as an alternative explanation for the findings of intervention studies based on the transtheoretical model and implementation intentions. Design: Participants (N = 350) were randomized to a passive control condition (questionnaire only), active control condition (questionnaire plus instruction to plan to quit), or experimental condition (questionnaire, plan to quit, form an implementation intention). Their behavior and psychosocial orientation to quit were measured at baseline and at 2-month follow-up. Main Outcome Measures: Theory of planned behavior variables, nicotine dependence, and quitting. Results: Significantly more people quit smoking in the experimental condition than in the control conditions, and the planning instructions changed intention to quit and perceived control over quitting, but not behavior. Stage of change moderated these effects such that implementation intentions worked best for individuals who were in the preparation stage at baseline. Conclusion: Harnessing both motivational and volitional processes seems to enhance the effectiveness of smoking cessation programs, although further work is required to clarify inconsistencies in the literature using the stages of change. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A study of the lagged relationships among safety climate, safety motivation, safety behavior, and accidents at the individual and group levels.

The authors measured perceptions of safety climate, motivation, and behavior at 2 time points and linked them to prior and subsequent levels of accidents over a 5-year period. A series of analyses examined the effects of top-down and bottom-up processes operating simultaneously over time. In terms of top-down effects, average levels of safety climate within groups at 1 point in time predicted subsequent changes in individual safety motivation. Individual safety motivation, in turn, was associated with subsequent changes in self-reported safety behavior. In terms of bottom-up effects, improvements in the average level of safety behavior within groups were associated with a subsequent reduction in accidents at the group level. The results contribute to an understanding of the factors influencing workplace safety and the levels and lags at which these effects operate. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The impact of working life on health behavior: The effect of job strain on the cognitive predictors of exercise.

The theory of planned behavior (TPB) and R. A. Karasek's (1979) job strain model were used to investigate the predictors of exercise in a group of employees. A total of 241 employees completed an initial questionnaire; 1 week later 213 employees responded to a questionnaire measuring behavior. Employees in high-strain jobs did significantly less exercise than those in low-strain jobs, although they did not intend to do less, suggesting that work may impede the intention implementation. Intenders who failed to exercise had significantly higher work demands and lower exercise self-efficacy than intenders who succeeded in exercising. Work also affected exercise indirectly through self-efficacy. Thus, work may be a target for behavior change intervention because of its impact at 2 stages of the TPB. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Moderators of the relation between perceived and actual posttraumatic growth.

Although numerous studies suggest that most people report posttraumatic growth (PTG) following traumatic events, the relations between measures of self-reported PTG and actual pre- to posttrauma growth are small (Frazier et al., 2009). The purpose of the current study was to investigate moderators of the relation between perceived and actual growth. Participants were undergraduates who had experienced a traumatic event between Time 1 and Time 2 (2 months later; n = 122) and a matched no-trauma comparison group (n = 122). Participants completed self-report measures of perceived growth (Posttraumatic Growth Inventory; Tedeschi & Calhoun, 1996) at Time 2, actual growth from Time 1 to Time 2 (Frazier et al., 2009), and 4 potential moderators (i.e., distress and life satisfaction at Time 2 and neuroticism and self-esteem at Time 1 pre-event). The moderator analyses suggested that, in the trauma group, perceived growth was more strongly related to actual growth for individuals who reported less distress and more life satisfaction posttrauma. None of the 4 variables were significant moderators for the no-trauma group. Clinical and research implications are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Predicting behavioral intentions and physical exercise: A test of the health action process approach at the intrapersonal level.

Objective: Theories of health behavior are usually tested on the between-person level. Associations between variables on the between- and the within-person level, however, can differ substantially. Thus, in order to better understand intrapersonal processes in the domain of health behavior, studies applying within-person analyses are needed. This study tested the Health Action Process Approach (HAPA) on the within- and between-person level in the context of physical exercise. Design: Participants were 265 first-year students who completed nine online questionnaires every second week. Data were analyzed by focusing on intrapersonal associations applying multilevel modeling. Main Outcome Measures: Intentions for physical exercise and self-reported physical exercise served as main outcome measures. Results: Analyses mainly confirm associations specified by the HAPA at the intrapersonal level: outcome expectancies and self-efficacy, but not risk awareness, were positively associated with intentions for physical exercise. Physical exercise in turn was positively associated with intentions, self-efficacy, action control, but not with action planning. Conclusion: The HAPA could be confirmed on the within-person level. Future studies should focus on testing other theories of health behavior at the within-person level. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A connectionist implementation of the theory of planned behavior: Association of beliefs with exercise intention.

The theory of planned behavior suggests attitudes are a product of salient beliefs. This study examined whether aggregating salient beliefs was plausible within a more biologically centered information-processing environment. A neural network was used to examine associations among beliefs relating to exercise intention. Data on intentions and behavioral, normative, and control beliefs from 114 respondents were used to train (by error backpropagation) a neural network to associate beliefs with intention. The R2 between the network's estimated and self-reported intention was .66. The network's representation comprised 6 belief profiles associated with high, moderate, or low behavioral intention. The neural network accommodated complex relationships among beliefs and belief-intention associations and indicated how high-level constructs such as attitudes may be viewed as the best fit (compromise state) between aroused beliefs. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The theory of planned behavior as a model of heavy episodic drinking among college students.

This study provided a simultaneous confirmatory test of the theory of planned behavior (TPB) in predicting heavy episodic drinking (HED) among college students. It was hypothesized that past HED, drinking attitudes, subjective norms, and drinking refusal self-efficacy would predict intention, which would, in turn, predict future HED. Participants consisted of 131 college drinkers (63% women) who reported having engaged in HED in the previous 2 weeks. Participants were recruited and completed questionnaires within the context of a larger intervention study (see Collins & Carey, 2005). Latent factor structural equation modeling was used to test the ability of the TPB to predict HED. Chi-square tests and fit indices indicated good fit for the final structural models. Self-efficacy and attitudes but not subjective norms significantly predicted baseline intention, and intention and past HED predicted future HED. Contrary to hypotheses, however, a structural model excluding past HED provided a better fit than a model including it. Although further studies must be conducted before a definitive conclusion is reached, a TPB model excluding past behavior, which is arguably more parsimonious and theory driven, may predict HED among college drinkers better than a model including past behavior. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Does the Theory of Planned Behavior Mediate the Effects of an Oncologist's Recommendation to Exercise in Newly Diagnosed Breast Cancer Survivors? Results From a Randomized Controlled Trial.

This randomized trial examined the effects of 2 oncologist-based exercise interventions--recommendation only (RO) and recommendation plus referral (RR)--versus usual care (UC) on social-cognitive constructs from the theory of planned behavior (TPB). The authors also examined whether the TPB mediated the significant effect of the RO intervention on exercise and explained the null effect of the RR intervention. Independent t tests revealed that both interventions had significant effects on TPB constructs; however, only the RO intervention impacted perceived behavioral control (PBC). Path analyses indicated that PBC was the only construct with a direct effect on exercise and that it mediated the effect of the RO intervention on exercise and explained the null effect of the RR intervention. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Predicting adherence to exercise-based therapy in rehabilitation.

Objective: To determine whether the theory of planned behavior (TPB) would predict adherence to exercise-based therapy and whether perceived symptom changes during therapy would add to the prediction of adherence. Design: Prospective observational study. Participants: 106 women and 44 men undertaking rehabilitation for dizziness. Method: The TPB predictors were assessed with a structured interview at baseline and at 3 months after the beginning of therapy. Symptoms provoked by the exercises were measured at baseline, at the initial therapy session, and at 1 week and 3 weeks after the beginning of therapy. Results: Both pretreatment and posttreatment intentions were related to adherence. Symptom perceptions independently predicted adherence. Conclusions: The findings suggest that interventions to improve adherence could be based on the TPB, but symptom experiences during treatment also need to be taken into account in such interventions. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The relations of effortful control and ego control to children's resiliency and social functioning.

The relations of effortful control and ego control to children's (mean age=137 months) resiliency, social status, and social competence were examined concurrently (Time 3) and over time. Adults reported on the constructs, and a behavioral measure of persistence was obtained. At Time 3, resiliency mediated the unique relations of both effortful and reactive control to social status, and effortful control directly predicted socially appropriate behavior. Negative emotionality moderated the relations of ego and effortful control to socially appropriate behavior. When levels of the variables 2 years prior were accounted for, all relations held at Time 3 except that effortful control did not predict resiliency (even though it was the stronger predictor at Time 3) and ego control directly predicted socially appropriate behavior. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Efficacy of a brief worksite intervention to reduce smoking: The roles of behavioral and implementation intentions.

The effectiveness of worksite interventions to reduce smoking needs to be enhanced because randomized controlled trials to date have produced mixed findings. The present study tested the ability of social-cognitive variables to mediate the past behavior-future behavior relationship and the effectiveness of implementation intentions to break the past behavior-future behavior relationship in a brief theory-based worksite intervention designed to reduce smoking. Smoking behavior and psychosocial orientation to quit (operationalized by theory of planned behavior variables and temptations) were measured at baseline; participants (N=90) randomized to the experimental condition were also asked to form an implementation intention in their place of work. Identical measures taken 2 months postbaseline revealed that intention was a potent mediator of the past behavior-future behavior relationship. More important, significantly more people quit smoking in the experimental condition than in the control condition. Decomposition of these effects showed that implementation intentions worked best for individuals who were more motivated to quit at baseline and suggest that harnessing both motivational and volitional processes might enhance the effectiveness of worksite smoking cessation programs. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)