Comparison of Health Behavior Theories and Models

Ecological Model

Summary of the Theory

Also referred to as the social-ecological model, this theory is vital in understanding the factors that affect behavior and hence gives guidance for emerging fruitful programs via social environments. It addresses the behavior change at numerous levels.

List and describe the concepts, constructs, or major components of this theory

Its levels of influence include intrapersonal factors, interpersonal processes and primary groups, organizational or institutional factors, community factors, and public policies.

Strengths of this model

Educate people, inspire people to take responsibility, and show that preventing a disease is not expensive.

Challenges and limitations of this model

It can be costly if interventions that encompass multiple levels are used.

Conflict of interventions and diverse levels

In what setting is the model most applicable or best used?

Organizations and institutions

With what audience and or population would this model be best used?

Employees

List and describe each of the constructs

Intrapersonal factors: Inspire counseling to enhance self-confidence and educate communities.

Interpersonal processes and primary groups: Inspire people to exercise with others and offering community walking groups.

Organizational or institutional factors: encourage organizations to offers working environments that support healthy food and fitness facility

Community factors: they create social media campaigns with health messages

 Public policies.: The push for laws that support healthy policies

Health Belief Model (HBM)

Summary of the Theory

It is a psychological health behavior change model that was introduced in the 1950s to give an explanation or prediction of the health-related behaviors

List and describe the concepts, constructs, or major components of this theory

The major components of the model are the desire to get well or avoid disease and conviction that a particular health action will prevent the disease.

The constructs include Self-efficacy, Cues to action, perceived benefits, perceived barriers, perceived severity, and perceived susceptibility

Strengths of this model

Important in discussing health behavior change

Useful for designing health promotion programming

Challenges and limitations of this model

1. it adopts the fact that every person gets access to equal amounts of a disease’s information

2. It fails to consider the account behaviors done for reasons that are non-health

3. IT ignores the beliefs and attitudes of a person

4. fails to consider the economic or environmental factors that encourage or forbid a suggested action

In what setting is the model most applicable or best used?

In a community or place where people need to change health-related behaviors. Also in schools

With what audience and or population would this model be best used?

Youth, students 

List and describe each of the constructs

Self-efficacy- The amount of confidence an individual has in an effort or ability to perform a behavior magnificently.

Cues to action- cues can be internal or external and they act as a stimulus to prompt a decision-making process for accepting a certain suggested health action.

Perceived benefits- The are the perceptions of an individual concerning the effectiveness of different actions to minimize the threat of disease.

Perceive barriers- the feelings of a person towards obstacles to perform a suggested health action

Perceived severity- The feelings of an individual on the solemnity of getting a disease

 Perceived susceptibility- the perceptions of an individual regarding the risk of getting a disease.

TRA/TPB

Summary of the Theory

 Was first introduced in 1980 as the Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA). It is vital in predicting a person’s objective to participate in a behavior at a particular place and time. The behaviors that people can have self-control.

List and describe the concepts, constructs, or major components of this theory

This model has six constructs including attitudes, behavioral intentions, subjective norms, social norms, perceived power, and perceived behavioral control 

Strengths of this model

The theory allows practitioners to conclude the particular beliefs for a specific population

Challenges and limitations of this model

The theory fails to address the timeframe of behavioral action

It doesn't address the actual control over the behavior

Does not consider economic or environmental factors

In what setting is the model most applicable or best used?

Hospitals to explain the health behaviors of patients

With what audience and or population would this model be best used?

Patients, Smokers, alcoholics.

List and describe each of the constructs

Attitudes: It is the level in which an individual possesses a satisfactory or uncomplimentary behavior evaluation

Behavioral intentions: These are the motivational factors that affect a specific behavior where when the chances of the intentions of performing a behavior are high the higher likelihood of performing that behavior

Subjective norms: These are beliefs on whether many people accept or reject the behavior.

Social norms: A group’s customary codes of behavior

Perceived power: include the apparent existence of factors that encourage or prevent the performance of a behavior 

Perceived behavioral control: The perception of an individual regarding the easiness or struggle of doing the behavior of interest 

Integrated behavior model

Summary of the Theory

This model shows a signal of the readiness by a person or decides to perform the behavior. It combines parts of the TRA/TPB and also expanded to add other components from other behavioral theories. It is meant to transform health behaviors.

List and describe the concepts, constructs, or major components of this theory

Its constructs include experimental attitude, descriptive norm, personal agency, and self-efficacy

Strengths of this model

This model allows practitioners to conclude the particular beliefs for a specific population

Challenges and limitations of this model

It is only useful when taking into considerations the individual health behaviors.

Ignores other determinants of healthy behaviors such as education, social-economic status, and race.

In what setting is the model most applicable or best used?

Health education, hospitals

With what audience and or population would this model be best used?

Populations with HIV or pregnancy

List and describe each of the constructs

Experimental attitude: the emotional response of a person towards doing a particular behavior.

Descriptive norm: evaluates whether most people’s perspectives reading whether many individuals perform a specific behavior.

Perceived norm: the social pressure that some people experience to do or not do a specific behavior.

Personal agency: it includes of the self-efficacy and perceived control in the TPB

Transtheoretical Model (TTM)

Summary of the Theory

The Transtheoretical Model is also known as the stages of change model. It was introduced in the late 1970s by Prochaska and DiClemente. Individuals are at diverse stages of readiness in adopting healthy behaviors. However, people are most likely to change their behaviors decisively and quickly.

List and describe the concepts, constructs, or major components of this theory

Their stages in TTM include pre-contemplation, contemplation, preparation, action, maintenance, and termination

Strengths of this model

Offers a framework to be used for both the measurement and conceptualization of behavior change.

Challenges and limitations of this model

• Doesn’t take into consideration social context where change occurs
• Does not give the required time required for each stage.

In what setting is the model most applicable or best used?

In communities and organizations

With what audience and or population would this model be best used?

Smokers, and alcoholics

List and describe each of the constructs

Pre-contemplation: Individuals have no plans of taking action in the anticipatable future since they are not aware of the problems caused by their behavior.

Contemplation: Individuals are planning to begin a health behavior at this stage in the anticipated future.

Preparation: In the next 30 days, individuals are ready to take action

Action: At this stage, individuals have transformed their behavior and they intend to maintain that change.

Maintenance: this is the sustenance of behavior stage where people intend to maintain the change.

Termination: individuals have transformed and they don’t intend to return to their previous unhealthy behavior.

Social Cognitive Model (SCT)

Summary of the Theory

This theory describes the human behavior by considering a reciprocal dynamic, and three-way model where behavior, environmental influences, and personal facts repetitively interact. In other words, people learn by observing the actions of others.

List and describe the concepts, constructs, or major components of this theory

The constructs of SCT include self-efficacy, self-control. reinforcement, and observational learning.

Major components of SCT include personal factors, behavior, and environmental influences.

Strengths of this model

Can be easily and quickly administered and it is an evolving theory that can be changed

Challenges and limitations of this model

Not organized well and only focuses on the interplay between environment, behavior, and person.

Doesn’t focus on motivation and emotion

It is broad-reaching

In what setting is the model most applicable or best used?

Can be applied in communication, education, and psychology

With what audience and or population would this model be best used?

Learners

List and describe each of the constructs

Self-efficacy: Is the ability of an individual of taking action and persisting in that actions in spite of the challenges.

Reciprocal determinism: It is the major constructs to SCT implying that an individual can is both a responder to change and an agent for change.

Reinforcement: Are the external and internal responses to the behavior of an individual.

Observational learning: confirms that individuals can observe and witness a behavior depicted by others.

Expectations: Foreseen penalties of an individual’s behavior

Diffusion of innovation

Summary of the Theory

Introduced in 1962 by Rogers and it explains how a concept or products acquires momentum and spreads via a particular social system or population. individuals adopt a new behavior, product or concept as part of a social system.

List and describe the concepts, constructs, or major components of this theory

It has five adopter categories including innovators, early adopters, early majority, later majority, and laggards

Strengths of this model

Helps in examining how concepts or ideas are spread among groups of people

Challenges and limitations of this model

It fails to consider the resources of a person of social support

Does not encourage a participatory approach to adopting a behavior

The evidence didn't come from the public health

In what setting is the model most applicable or best used?

Social work, criminal justice, public health, agriculture, communication, and marketing

With what audience and or population would this model be best used?

Public health patients and social workers

List and describe each of the constructs

Innovators: Individuals who intend to be the first to innovate a new concept or product

Early adopters: They are individuals representing the opinion leaders and enjoy embracing change opportunities

Early majority: these are individuals who require evidence that innovation works hence do adopt new concepts before the average person

Later majority: these are individuals doubting any changes hence will only accept innovations once it has been tried by majority

Laggards: These are conservative individuals and don’t like any change completely.

Precede-Proceed model

Summary of the Theory

This is a comprehensive arrangement used in the assessment of health needs to design, implement, and evaluate health promotions and additional health programs. Precede means planning for a public health program whereas Proceed means to implement and evaluate the program.

List and describe the concepts, constructs, or major components of this theory

Precede has four phases including define the outcome, identify the issue, examine factors that affect the behavior, and identify the best practices

Also Proceed has phases such as implementation, process evaluation, impact evaluation, and outcome evaluation 

Strengths of this model

This model offers an appropriate structure to plan your work and create a coherent plan

It also offers a guide or basis for critical analysis

Challenges and limitations of this model

It is not attentive to detail because a large group of people is involved.

Its gives specific instructions to be followed which might not be applicable with the current issue

In what setting is the model most applicable or best used?

Health promotions, public health, evaluating community programs 

With what audience and or population would this model be best used?

Communities, health facilities

List and describe each of the constructs

Precede

Social assessment: assessing health needs and social problems

Epidemiological assessment: evaluating the factors affecting the behavior

Identify best practices: determine the policy factors that would result in inappropriate interventions and implanting the interventions 

Proceed

Implementation: assessing the availability of resources. designing an intervention and implementing a program

Process evaluation: Determining whether a program is acquiring the anticipated population to acquire anticipated goals

Impact evaluation: evaluating the behavior change

Outcome evaluation: identifying whether there is a reduction in the prevalence or incidence of a behavior