The Journal of Social Psychology, 2011, 151(3), 382–385 Copyright © Taylor & Francis Group, LLC
BOOK REVIEW Review of Predicting and Changing Behavior: The Reasoned Action Approach GREGG J. GOLD Humboldt State University
Predicting and Changing Behavior: The Reasoned Action Approach, by M. Fishbein and I. Ajzen. New York, NY: Psychology Press, Taylor & Francis Group, 2010. 518 pp. ISBN 978-0-8058-5924-9. $69.95, hardcover. IN THE 1960s MARTIN FISHBEIN (the Harry C. Coles Jr. Distinguished Professor in Communication at the Annenberg School for Communication), and Icek Ajzen (Professor of Psychology at the University of Massachusetts), began work on a theory to parsimoniously explain and predict human social behavior. They called this the theory of planned behavior. Their early work resulted in a large number of published papers, both by the authors and others. In the 1970s, the authors updated their theory and began to call it the theory of reasoned action. This work led to their seminal text, Understanding Attitudes and Predicting Social Behavior (Ajzen & Fishbein, 1980). Since then, over 1000 peer-reviewed empirical papers based on Ajzen and Fishbein’s theory of reasoned action have appeared in professional journals. The 1980 text was useful and inspiring—both to researchers new to their theory and to those already publishing studies based on their reasoned action approach. The same, and more, can also be said of their 30-year update, Predicting and Changing Behavior: The Reasoned Action Approach (Fishbein & Ajzen, 2010)—a book written primarily for a professional audience. The current book (synthesizing 45 years of work) provides the updated information, examples, and reference studies necessary for research psychologists to successfully apply the reasoned action approach to human behavior. In addition, the current text
Address correspondence to Gregg J. Gold, Humboldt State University, Department of Psychology, 1 Harpst St., Arcata, CA 95521, USA;
[email protected] (e-mail). 382
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is complete and detailed enough to serve as a general handbook for researchers of other theoretical viewpoints (or measurement students) who are interested in the overall practical, theoretical, and methodological aspects of predicting human behavior. The volume also contains an important update to reasoned action theory and discusses in detail how the principles of reasoned action theory can and are being used in programs designed to change human behavior. Thus, as will be discussed below, this book makes a substantial contribution to both experimental and applied psychology. Fishbein and Ajzen (1980, 2010) propose that human behavior can best be predicted from a person’s intentions, and that these intentions are determined by the person’s attitudes toward the behavior, perceived norms regarding the behavior, and perceptions of control regarding the behavior. Underlying (i.e. responsible for) these three constructs are corresponding behavioral, normative, and control beliefs. The authors contend then, “at the core, the processes underlying all human social behavior are essentially the same and can be described by a small set of constructs” (Fishbein & Ajzen, 2010, p. 17). The book begins with a brief history of the research in predicting human behavior, noting how previous researchers struggled to explain why attitudes (a traditionally heavily researched area) were, by themselves, such a poor predictor of human behavior. However, as the authors discovered, “Overall, intentions have considerable predictive validity” (Fishbein & Ajzen, 2010, p. 68). Their task was then to determine the causal determinants of intentions, leading to the formulation of reasoned action theory. Throughout the book, the authors point out where their thinking has advanced or changed and how they arrived at their current views. One example is perceived norms. Previous versions of reasoned action theory approached norms as purely subjective—i.e. “an individual’s perception that most people who are important to her think she should [or should not] perform a particular behavior” (Fishbein & Ajzen, 2010, p. 131). This singular view of norms has been discarded. Now norms are conceptualized in two ways: Injunctive norms, which are perceptions of what others consider to be correct behavior; and descriptive norms, which are perceptions of what others are actually doing. This book also serves as a tutorial on the proper aspects of designing a scientific study of human behavior. For example, the authors observe that one of the primary deficiencies they have observed in published studies is the lack of attention to compatibility between measures. With regards to their theory, they stress that, “The most fundamental requirement for a strong relation between intentions and behavior is a high degree of compatibility in our measures” (Fishbein & Ajzen, 2010, p. 54). In order to help researchers avoid this potential problem when designing studies, they describe in detail the various kinds of compatibility that should be attended to. They also deal with many other important yet often overlooked issues that arise when planning and conducting experiments designed to predict human behavior. To facilitate understanding,
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published research examples are referred to, and detailed examples (including actual questionnaire items) of how things should be done are given. They also make a strong theoretical and empirical case for the validity of self-reports, while carefully acknowledging their limitations. There may be a temptation for some to skim over sections discussing methodological issues in questionnaire research and the detailed explanations (and examples) on the correct way to design studies using the reasoned action approach. This would be a mistake, as these sections are one of the strengths of this book. The authors observe that “though virtually hundreds of studies have tested variations of our theory, we were able to find only relatively few that contained all of the elements required for a complete and valid test.” (Fishbein & Ajzen, 2010, p. 185). Here they have gone to great efforts to provide scientists the tools necessary to facilitate the design of better studies. In an important new direction, the authors make the argument that if you know the elements to successfully predict intentions and behavior, then those same elements can and should be used when designing a program to change intentions and behavior. Thus, “By identifying the behavioral, normative, and control beliefs that serve as the underlying determinants of a behavior we also gain important information about the kinds of beliefs that would have to be changed to effect a change in intentions and behavior” (Fishbein & Ajzen, 2010, p. 322). The process of designing such a behavioral intervention can be thought of as occurring in several steps. One begins by identifying the behavior of interest, and then from a sample of the population of interest, eliciting information consistent with reasoned action theory that is related to this behavior. The influencing agent can then use this information to identify which of the determinants of behavioral intentions are to be addressed and identify the beliefs related to the determinants to be targeted. As Fishbein and Ajzen (2010) note, “Selection of appropriate primary beliefs is perhaps our theory’s most important contribution to behavior change interventions” (p. 367). The next step would be to design the intervention, and here Fishbein and Ajzen (2010) admit theirs is not a theory of social influence, and they have “little to say about the means, strategies, or techniques” (p. 337) for change. However, “our approach can help investigators avoid certain pitfalls that often undermine an intervention’s effectiveness” (Fishbein & Ajzen, 2010, p. 337). They illustrate this while referencing some of the more important behavior change theories. For those familiar with the literature on social influence, persuasive communication, and behavior change, this section has some useful insights and points to consider. For others, this section serves as a useful primer to the field. To demonstrate the application of reasoned action theory to behavior change, several published examples of interventions are discussed. These include those intended to get men to perform testicular self-examination for early cancer detection, promoting the use of public transportation, HIV/AIDS prevention among a small group of African American adolescents, a large-scale project involving
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five cities to increase condom use and needle sterilization among populations at high risk for HIV infection, and another large scale multi-city project focused on HIV/AIDS prevention. In these studies, use of the reasoned action approach resulted in significant changes in behavior relative to control groups. In this new volume, Fishbein and Ajzen do not ignore challenges to their theory that have arisen over the years. For critics, there are two primary concerns: sufficiency and that the theory is too rational and Western culture-centric. With regards to sufficiency, the authors point out (in addition to their other arguments) that their theory can account for 50–60% of the variance in intentions and 30–40% in behavior, which by anyone’s estimation, are very large amounts of variance. Also, if one takes into account random measurement variance, their theory approaches the theoretical limits of predictive validity. With regards to the other main critique, they refute it both theoretically— “there is nothing in our theory to suggest that people are rational or that they behave in a rational manner” (Fishbein & Ajzen, 2010, p. 301)—and empirically, citing a number of published papers successfully predicting such “irrational” behaviors as speeding, smoking, unprotected sex, and addictive behaviors. As such then, contrary to the common misconception, the “reasoned action approach does not assume rationality” (Fishbein & Ajzen, 2010, p. 303). Clearly the authors want both theoretical and applied psychologists to be able to use reasoned action theory as powerfully as possible to successfully predict and change human behavior. Here, they provide the latest techniques, references, and examples to enable this to happen. AUTHOR NOTE Gregg J. Gold is an Associate Professor of psychology at Humboldt State University. Research interests center on social influence. REFERENCES Ajzen, I. & Fishbein, M. (1980). Understanding attitudes and predicting social behavior. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall. Fishbein, M. & Ajzen, I. (2010). Predicting and changing behavior: The reasoned action approach. New York, NY: Psychology Press, Taylor & Francis Group.
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