Chapter 7 Health cognitions and health behaviours
health behaviours
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CHAPTER PLAN
In Chapter 6 we examined the part that personality plays in determining health
outcomes. In this chapter we examine health cognitions, foundational to motivation,
which have been found to differentiate between people who do and do not perform
health behaviours. This is followed by an examination of how health-related motivation
can be changed in Chapter 8 and how health-related behaviours can be changed in
Chapter 9.
The prevalence of health-related behaviours varies across social groups. For example,
smoking is more prevalent among those from more economically deprived back -
grounds. This would suggest that these factors might be the focus of interventions to
change health-related behaviours. However, socio-demographic factors may be
impossible to change or may require political intervention at national or international
levels (such as changes in income distribution or taxation). For that reason a con -
siderable body of research has examined more modifiable factors that may mediate
(and explain) the relationship between socio-demographic factors and health-related
behaviours. A particularly promising set of factors are the thoughts and feelings the
individual associates with the particular health-related behaviour. These are known as
health cognitionsand are the focus of this chapter. We will consider (1) predicting health
behaviours; (2) social cognition models; (3) a critical appraisal of social cognition
models; and (4) the intention–behaviour gap.
When you have completed this chapter you should be able to:1 Describe the key health cognitions associated with performing health behaviours.
2 Explain what the cognitive determinants of health behaviours are according to (a)
the health belief model; (b) protection motivation theory; (c) theory of planned
behaviour; and (d) social cognitive theory.LEARNING OUTCOMES