Midterm 1- Lesson 1-9 Flashcards
List five stages in the trans-theoretical model of behavior change
- ) Pre-contemplation
- ) Contemplation
- ) Preparation
- ) Action
- ) Maintenance
Pre-contemplation
When a person has no intention of changing his or her behavior. Many individuals in this stage are not even aware that they have a problem, although families, friends, neighbors, or coworkers may well be. Sometimes people in this stage seek treatment, but typically they do so only if they have been pressure by others and feel themselves coerced into changing their behavior.
Contemplation
: The person is aware that a problem exists and is thinking about it but has not yet made a commitment to take action. Many individuals remain in the contemplation stage for years, such as the smoker who knows he or she should stop but has not yet made the commitment to do so. Individuals in this stage are typically still weighing the pros and cons of changing their behavior, continuing to find the positive aspects of the behavior enjoyable.
Preparation
In this stage, the person intends to change a target behavior but has not yet begun to take action. In some cases, individuals have been unsuccessful in the past, or they may simply be delaying action until they can get through a certain event or stressful period of time. In other cases, individuals in the preparation stage have already modified the target behavior somewhat, such as smoking fewer cigarettes than usual, but have not yet made the commitment to eliminate the behavior altogether.
Action
This is the stage in which the individual modifies the target behavior to overcome a specific problem. Action requires the commitment of time and energy to making real behavior change. It includes stopping the behavior and modifying one’s lifestyle and environment so as to rid one’s life of cues associated with the behavior.
Maintenance
Working to prevent relapse and to consolidate the gains they have made. Typically, if a person is able to remain free of the addictive behavior for more than six months, s/he is assumed to be in the maintenance stage.
Give examples of how social engineering has been used for behavior change.
Social engineering involves modifying the environment in order to change behavior. Examples include: seat belt laws, banning drugs, restrictions on smoking in public places, requiring vaccinations for children, lowering speed limits and raising the drinking age.
Explain why health practitioners consider family, school, and work to be desirable venues for behavior change.
Family venues: Children learn their health habits from their parents. Families in which are there are children and working adults typically have organized, structured lifestyles than single people do that are conducive for build in healthy behaviors. Multiple family members tend to be affected by one member’s health habits. And families can create a supportive environment for behavior change.
School venues: Because most children go to school, behavior change programs that take place in schools can reach a large population. Young children are malleable and can be reached before they have developed poor health habits. When young people are taught effective health behaviors early, these behaviors may become habitual and stay with them their whole lives. The classroom is a good setting for behavior interventions. Schools can reinforce certain behaviors by using sanctions such as permitting attendance only for students who have been inoculated. And peers are a powerful support system for reinforcing behavior.
Work venues: Most people work. Large numbers of people can be educated simultaneously in a work environment. Sanctions can be enforced on-the-job. And there is a social support system in place to reinforce health behaviors.
Discuss the effectiveness of work-site interventions.
These programs have a modest success rate. Enrollments tend to be low (20% or less) unless attendance is required by the employer. Interventions often reach those with jobs of higher rather than lower occupational prestige. The most effective programs tend to promote competition among teams.
Give examples of community-based interventions.
Door-to-door campaigns providing information about specific health concerns; free screenings; a media blitz alerting people to certain health risk; a diet modification program that recruits through community institutions.
trans-theoretical model of behavior change
An analysis of the health behavior change process that draws on the stages and processes people go through in order to bring about successful long-term behavior change. The stages include precontemplation, contemplation, preparation, action, and maintenance. Successful attitude or behavior change at each stage depends on the appropriateness of intervention. For example, attitude-change materials help move people from precontemplation to contemplation, whereas relapse prevention techniques help move people from action to maintenance.
social engineering
Social or lifestyle change through legislation; for example, water purification is done through social engineering rather than by individual efforts.
