Session 4 Lecture 1- Theories of Health behaviour 1

Question 1

State 3 theories to help understand people’s health-related behaviours

Answer 1

• Learning theories
• Social cognition models
• Integrative model: COM-B

Question 2

State 3 examples of learning theories

Answer 2

• Classical conditioning
• Operant conditioning
• Social learning theories

Question 3

What are health-related behaviours?

Answer 3

Anything that may promote good health or lead to illness

Question 4

How does classical conditioning work in human?

Answer 4

Cues such as environmental or emotional can be associated with using drugs/alcohol

Question 5

Linking Classical conditioning and changing health behaviour

Answer 5

• Avoid cues or change association with cues

- Pairing behaviour with an unpleasant response

Question 6

What is Operant conditioning?

Answer 6

• People act on the environment and behaviour is shaped by consequences (reward/punishment)
• behaviour increases if it is rewared
• behaviour decreases if its punishes

Question 7

Linking Operant conditioning and health related behaviour

Answer 7

• unhealthy behaviours are immediately rewarding

- driven by short term rewards and avoiding short term consequences

Question 8

What are the limitations of conditioning theories?

Answer 8

• classical and operant conditioning are based on simple stimulus-response associations
• No account of cognitive processes, knowledge, beliefs, memory, attitudes, expectations e.t.c
• No account of social context

Question 9

What is Social learning theory?

Answer 9

• People can learn via observation/modelling
• Behaviour is goal-directed
• People motivated to perform behaviours that lead to rewards and they believe they can enact
• Modelling is more effective of models high status or ‘Like us’

Question 10

Linking Social learning theory and health-related behaviours

Answer 10

• influence of family, peers, media figures, celebrities as role models
• Harmful behaviours e.g drinking, drug use, unsafe sex
• positive behaviours e.g peer modelling/education

Question 11

State 3 examples of Social cognition models

Answer 11

• Cognitive dissonance theory
• Health belief model
• Theory of planned behaviour

Question 12

What is the Cognitive dissonance theory?

Answer 12

• Discomfort created when ideas and beliefs are in conflict with reality
• reduce discomfort by changing beliefs or behaviour

Question 13

Linking Cognitive dissonance theory and health-related behaviours

Answer 13

• making people aware of the lack of agreement (dissonance) between their behaviour and beliefs and reality and motivating change of behaviour
• providing uncomfortable health information to create mental discomfort and prompt change in behaviour

Question 14

What is the Health belief model?

Answer 14

If we want to understand people behaviour’s, we need to think about beliefs they hold about the threat they are facing to their health and behaviours they are engaging in and their cues to action.

Question 15

What are the believes surrounding health threats?

Answer 15

• perceived susceptibility (whether or not you believe you will get it)
• perceived severity (How severe it will be )

Question 16

What are the believes surrounding health-related behaviours?

Answer 16

• perceived benefits

- percieved barriers

Question 17

What does the Theory of planned behaviour entail?

Answer 17

• starts from the assumption that the strongest prediction of behaviour is in intention
• if no intention then less likely to do the behaviour

Question 18

What are the 3 main factors the drives people to have the intention to behave in a particular way?

• used to predict intention

Answer 18

Attitude towards behaviour - what do I think about it?

Subjective norm - what others think about it?

Perceived control - How easy it is to engage in the behaviour?