Women's Decision-Making And Factors Affecting Their Choice Of ...

HBM emphasises the value placed by an individual on a particular goal and the
individual's estimate that the likelihood of a given action will achieve that goal
(Becker, Heafner, Kasl et al 1977; Janz and Becker 1984; Kronenfeld and Glik
1991; Maiman and Becker 1974; Rosenstock 1974). The HBM is widely used to
explain preventive health behaviour by describing conscious decisions about the
cost and benefits of specific actions, and attempts to distinguish factors assumed
to influence the adoption of protective action (Janz and Becker 1984; Maiman and
Becker 1974). Examples include beliefs and self-protection from REV infection
(Abraham, Sheeran, Spears et al 1992), precautionary health behaviour as applied
to issues such as polio vaccination, preventive dental care, hypertension-control
and medical check-ups (van der Plight 1998). Precautionary behaviour is thought
more likely if perceived severity of consequences and vulnerability are high.
Kronfeld and Glik (1991) argue that the health belief model contains an explicit
conceptualisation of risk beliefs, and that in a narrow perspective belief about
susceptibility to a health danger is a risk perception. It has been argued that most
studies of HiBM are retrospective rather than prospective (van der Plight 1998),
and that in retrospective studies it is often impossible to determine whether beliefs
shape behaviour or whether people adapt their beliefs to be consistent with their
behaviour (Calnan and Moss 1984).
A second theoretical approach incorporated within the precaution adoption
process is the theory of reasoned action (TRA) (Ajzen and Fishbein 1980;
Fishbein and Ajzen 1975). The TRA is based on an assumption of rationality of
choice and systematic use of available information. According to the TRA, a
person's intention to perform an act is the immediate determinant of the action.
Behavioural intentions are seen as a function of two factors. The first factor is the
individual's subjective attitude towards the behaviour, and the second is the social
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