Definition
The Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA; Ajzen und Fishbein 1980; Fishbein und Ajzen 1975) and its extension, the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB; Ajzen 1985, 1991), are cognitive theories that offer a conceptual framework for understanding human behavior in specific contexts. In particular, the theory of planned behavior has been widely used to assist in the prediction and explanation of several health behaviors.
Description
According to the initial Theory of Reasoned Action, an intention to engage in a certain behavior is considered the best predictor of whether or not a person actually engages in that behavior. Intentions, in turn, are predicted by attitudes and subjective norms. That is, the more positively a person regards a certain behavior or action and the more they perceive the behavior as being important to their friends, family, or society, the more likely they are to form intentions to engage in the behavior. Azjen, however, noted the importance of a behavior being...
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References and Readings
Ajzen, I. (1985). From intentions to action: A theory of planned behavior. In J. Kuhl & J. Beckman (Eds.), Action control: From cognitions to behaviors (pp. 11–39). New York: Springer.
Ajzen, I. (1991). The theory of planned behavior. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 50, 179–211.
Ajzen, I. (n.d.) Theory of planned behavior. Retrieved 6 July, 2011 from http://people.umass.edu/aizen/tpb.html
Ajzen, I., & Fishbein, M. (1980). Understanding attitudes and predicting social behavior. Englewood Cliffs: Prentice-Hall.
Armitage, C. J., & Conner, M. (2001). Efficacy of the theory of planned behavior: A meta-analytic review. British Journal of Social Psychology, 40, 471–499.
Fishbein, M., & Ajzen, I. (1975). Belief, attitude, intention and behavior: An introduction to theory and research. Reading: Addison-Wesley.
Fishbein, M., & Ajzen, I. (2010). Predicting and changing behavior: The reasoned action approach. New York: Psychology Press.
Godin, G., & Kok, G. (1996). The theory of planned behavior: A review of its applications to health-related behaviors. American Journal of Health Promotion, 11(2), 87–98.
National Cancer Institute, US National Institutes of Health. (n.d.) Health behavior constructs: Theory, measurement, and research. Retrieved 6 July, 2011 from http://cancercontrol.cancer.gov/brp/constructs/index.html
Sheeran, P. (2002). Intention-behaviour relations: A conceptual and empirical review. In W. Stroebe & M. Hewstone (Eds.), European review of social psychology (Vol. 12, pp. 1–36). London: Wiley.
Webb, T. L., & Sheeran, P. (2006). Does changing behavioral intentions engender behavior change? A meta-analysis of the experimental evidence. Psychological Bulletin, 132, 249–268.
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LaCaille, L. (2020). Theory of Reasoned Action. In: Gellman, M.D. (eds) Encyclopedia of Behavioral Medicine. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-39903-0_1619
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-39903-0_1619
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