health belief model

• health belief model

  proposed by Rosenstock in 1966

  • theory is shown to be outdated due to the year that it was made
• perceived susceptibility

  how vulnerable a person believes themselves to be

  if seen to not be vulnerable then unlikely to change behaviour
• perceived seriousness

  how bad a person thinks an illness associated with their behavioural choices would be

  it includes how ill the person believes they would become
• perceived benefits and barriers

  a person weighs up the perceived benefits of healthy behaviours against the perceived barriers to them adopting those behaviours
• health motivation

  individuals differ in terms of the value they place on their own health

  people who place a high value on their own health are more willing to adopt healthier behaviours
• cues to action

  this is information in which makes a person more ready to behave in ways that support their health

  internal- experiencing symptoms

  external- public health messages
• self-efficacy

  relates to how competent people feel they are in adopting health-related behaviours

  -BANDURA developed this theory
• self-efficacy - bandura

  created 4 main elements for a successful self efficacy

  1. mastery experiences
  2. vicarious experiences
  3. social persuasion
  4. emotional states
• eval - cost benefit analysis

  + GORIN and HECK - women more likely to attend cervical screening if saw the potential illnesses as severe. If saw the risks as high then more likely to attend.

  can show that the HBM can predict whether a person will change their behaviour or not
• eval - SCHOFIELD et al 


  + found that cues to action are fairly important in changing health behaviours
• eval

  -model is based upon the assumptions that our choices are always rational when they aren't

  doesnt consider how emotions impact our choices
• eval

  -it is hard to know whether all factors the model describes are as equally important in affecting behaviour change
• BECKER - asthma


  -looked at factors affecting compliance in mothers administering asthma medication to children

  -found positive correlations between perception of severity and perception of susceptibility to asthma attacks.

  -perceived barriers were identified including difficulty getting prescriptions and disruption to everyday activities.
• CARPENTER

  -found that barriers were consistently the strongest predictor of behaviour change, followed by benefits

  -overall the HBM was a weak predictor of behaviour change