Psychology 415; Social Basis of Health Behavior Attitudes & self-regulation 1 Opening Issue: if health behavior is related to some stable attribute of.

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Attitudes & self-regulation 1

Opening

Issue: if health behavior is related to some stable attribute of the person, what is that? How is it changed? “Personality”: stable (unlearned?) trait

“Attitude”: Learned evaluative response

Attitudes: Core evaluation of an object

[Context dependent] Behavioral disposition

Attitude theory core issue: Attitude behavior consistency

Beliefs v. affect?

Conflicting beliefs?

Habit?

Self-efficacy?

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Core constituents: Attitude Models

Knowledge Information re: health practices

Awareness of health related stimuli ► “Cues to action”

Attitudes and Beliefs Preferences or evaluations: e.g., consumer preferences.

Beliefs, ► Perceived vulnerability, ► Outcome expectancies

Affect , e.g., depression / anxiety & information seeking

► “Affect as information” models

Behavior Behavioral history; ► habit formation

Behavioral intentions; context & behavior -specific cognitive “set”

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Some basic attitude elements

Context dependence Potentially multiple attitudes

Context dependency attitude – behavior inconsistency

Accessibility & strength priming effects

speed of recall

Ambivalence cognition v. affect

Approach avoidance

Anchoring effects

Value congruence “Instrumental” attitudes; functional in predicting outcomes of

behavior, modifiable via information or direct experience...

“Value expressive”; expression of basic ideology or principles...less responsive to experience or information.

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Basic attitude elements, 2

Primacy of affect & evaluation Affect >> cognition when they are in conflict

Congruent affect & cognition strong / change resistant attitude

Affective / evaluative Rx precedes cognitive processing

Affective priming independent of cognitive processes

sleeper effect?

Expectancy x value: core underpinning of attitude models Attitude = [belief1 x value1] + [belief2 x value2] + …

Key variables:

# & nature of key beliefs,

direction & strength of valuation (affective response).

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Basic attitude elements, 3

Cognitive accessibility of beliefs Cs goals and motivations accessibility

Arousal & accessibility (Oxytocin & sexual stimuli)

Positive goal features accessible for long-term decisions

Negative goal features accessible for short term decisions

Key approach avoidance conflict:

Long-term self-regulation (approach health goal) more effortful & cognitive demanding

Short-term affective coping (avoidance) less effortful.

Key approach avoidance conflict:

Long-term self-regulation (approach health goal) more effortful & cognitive demanding

Short-term affective coping (avoidance) less effortful.

Attentional “narrowing” and lessening accessibility

Alcohol / drug effects

Cognitive avoidance

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Attitude change/formation/Persuasion

Consistency theories dissonance theory value -- attitude congruence consistency & attraction averaging models (v. “tipping point” perspective)

Exposure / conditioning Simple repetition, pairing of attitude with existing positive response.

Heritability Happiness set point? Affectivity? Other set points; substance use, temperament, food. Tolerance for ambiguity?

Heuristic - systematic models of persuasion Motivated; argument strength predicts (strong & enduring) attitude

change Non-motivated: peripheral / heuristic elements predict less strong /

enduring change

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Attitude change

Receiver characteristics “Involvement” --> greater motivation...

Personal relevance

Defending pre-existing attitude

Express values

Intermediate levels of self-esteem --> change

Mood

Source characteristics Message clarity x source credibility (interaction with

‘motivation’)

In group v. out group

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Attitude change, 2

Message characteristics

Fear arousal: Rogers’ protection motivation theory

Basic message x receiver effects:

Seriousness of message;

personal susceptibility;

outcome expectancies;

efficacy expectancies

Framing;

Context effects

Gain v. loss & reflection effect

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Basic models

Triandis

[belief x affect] + belief 2 x affect 2].... = behavioral disposition

Fishbein

[belief x value] + [belief2 x value2]....

[norm x value] + [norm2 x value2]....

Ajzen; theory of Planned Behavior

Behavioral intention

Behavioral disposition

Habit

Self efficacy

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Psychosocial challenges for health behavior:Informational / Cognitive

Complexity and non-stability of health related information “Press conference” science

Food industry influence on HHS information

“Food pyramid” complexity

Credibility of multiple information sources The WEB and informational tunneling

Powerful cognitive message effects Framing: (in)congruence with approach / avoidant attitudes

Gain / loss: gain framing >> loss framing.

Cognitive salience of competing messages

Powerful anchoring effects of even trivial information

Social norms “Fat” norms

Culturally – specific norms; e.g., Gay community & drug use.

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Psychosocial challenges for health behavior:Affective

“Hot” information and cognitive or behavioral avoidance Cf: Miller C-SHIP model

HIV testing data, cancer screening, etc.

Cognitive avoidance in chronic disease

Self-efficacy: Fear of difficulty of behavioral change

“Demotivating” effects of negative mood “Strategic” use of negative health behavior to enhance mood

enhancing

“Denial” of health threat via group membership

Outgroup stereotypes and perceived non-vulnerability

Peer & cultural conformity pressure toward (or ‘not against’) health threats

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Psychosocial challenges for health behavior:Behavioral

Difficulty of delaying gratification, decreasing “stimulus boundedness”

“Automaticity”, cognitive capacity, and real limitations on cognitive control over behavior Self-monitoring and self-regulation needed to process and follow

health information

“Self-regulation capacity” models

7 +2 informational capacity

Real difficulty of health alternatives “Food deserts”

Violent neighborhoods / build environment & exercise availability

American industrial food system

Outcome & efficacy expectancies

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Self-Regulation

Core elements:

1.Goal setting

2.Self-evaluative reactions

3.Self-efficacy for goal-related behavioral performance

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Self-regulation elements: 1. Goal setting

Stable “action schema” or “script”

Abelson: “automatic” behavioral scripts

Higgins: discrepancies between “actual”, “ideal” & “ought” selves

Modest ideal actual: intrinsic motivation for goals

Modest ought actual: extrinsic motivation for goals

Strong ideal actual: guilt, anxiety

Strong ought actual: depression, helplessness

Goals as preferences: Ajzen attitude models

Goals and Action Identification

Higher-order identification: generalized values

Lower-order ID: concrete behaviors

Houston: shifts in ID to serve self-regulation

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Goals, 2: Action Identifications

HighHigh

LowLow

Abstract & longer-term, end states Difficult to monitor: slow-moving & non-specific Typically “approach” oriented / positive affect.

Concrete & immediate, behavioral intentions Specific, easier to monitor Mix of approach & avoidant (+ & - affect).

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Self-regulation: Basic cybernetic frame

Behavioral intentions


Behavioral standards


Self-monitoring of ongoing behavior


Actual behaviorActual

behaviorAvailable feedbackAvailable feedback

Behavioral “Comparator”


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Potential self-regulation failures











Loose linkage between attitude / intention behavior Role of habit / “automaticity,” contextual constraints Social network press for behavioral consistency Ambivalence: affective attraction of bad behavior v. pallid, high-

level action identification of being good Mixed, complex attitudes

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Potential self-regulation failure, 2











Clarity & specificity of behavioral standards Concreteness & specificity of behavioral plans Extrinsic v. intrinsic motivation & standards

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Quality & amount of feedback Frequency & visibility of target behaviors Availability of feedback from others Simple attention, memory capacity

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Effortful self-awareness of behavior Automaticity of target behavior – Monitoring is…

Productive for initiating behaviors Disruptive for automatic behaviors

Effortful monitoring “Coping fatigue”, generally aversive Tediousness of formal monitoring












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Quality & nature of comparison Self-focused attention as prerequisite for comparator Clarity & specificity of behavioral standards Cognitive avoidance of “hot” information (i.e., failure)

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Lowering standards in the face of failure Motivated downward comparison processes “What the hell” phenomenon Cognitive escape / “defensive” self-evaluation

Psychology 415; Social Basis of Health Behavior Attitudes & self-regulation 1 Opening Issue: if health behavior is related to some stable attribute of.

Documents

trait attitude

action attitudes

evaluative response

beliefs preferences

nature of key beliefs

conflicting beliefs

expectancy x value

core evaluation