Behavioural theories Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

Behavioural theories - Essay Example Different theories may vary depending on the manner in which they are tested and developed. For instance behavioural theories are theories that attempt to give an explanation concerning the reasons behind the changes in a person’s patterns of behaviour. Behavioural theories cite personal, behavioural, and environmental traits as a key factor in the determination of an individual’s behaviour. In recent studies, there has been a demand for the utility of these theories in education, health, energy, international development, and criminology areas with the wish that when the behavioural theories are understood, then the services that are given in this area would be improved (Nutbeam, 2000). This paper explores different behavioural theories and the understanding of behaviour. Recent studies have shown that that the key theories, which are the baseline for the current understanding of the behaviour theories, were documented in the 1980s. Some of these theories include icek Ajzen’s and Martin Fishbein works on the ‘reasoned action theory’ (Ajzen, 1985). ... esearch towards the understanding of behaviour change management alngside widening the base of the research so as to revise the current theories whose key focus is on initial changes (Akers, & Krohn, 2009). Certainly, the behavioural theories focus on a variety of factors that attempt to give an explanation of behavioural change. Example of these theories include social, cognitive theory, reasons action theory, learning theory, transtheoretical theory, health process action theory, and the planned behaviour theory (Bandura, 1989). There are some specific elements that could be applied in these theories. One key example of the elements is self efficacy, which can be applied to almost all these theories. Self efficacy is a person impression concerning his ability in performing a challenging task like going through surgery. Such an impression relies on factors such as a person’s prior success in that task, tasks that are related, the physiological state of an individual, and the persuasion source from outside (Bandura, 1989). Self efficacy is believed to be a prediction of the level of efforts that an individual will release in maintaining and initiating a change in behaviour (Elton, 2003). Learning theory, on the other hand, is a theory that originated from behaviourists such as B.F Skinner. The theory argues out that behaviour that is complex could be learnt slowly by modification of behaviours that are simple (Skinner, 1957). In this theory, reinforcement and imitation have a significant role to play. In this respect, an individual will learn through copying the behaviour that he observes in other people. Additionally, rewards are useful in ensuring that the desired behaviour is repeated. Whenever behaviour comes about due to reinforcement and imitation, there would