Human behavior is based on many factors that affect people throughout life. Therefore, it can be argued that many patterns of behavior are learned, “planned,” and amenable to change. In some cases, planned behavior has a beneficial effect on people because it helps them cope with one or another standard difficulty in their lives. However, often this leads to fatal consequences for human life. For instance, some addictions (smoking, drinking, or taking drugs) can be listed among these consequences. According to Gross (2017), “one of the strengths of the theory of planned behavior is its broad applicability: applications of the model can be found across numerous disciplines, including nursing, information technology, social policy and sociology” (p. 9). The purpose of this paper is to develop an intervention based on the theory of planned behavior.
A critical health problem in the modern world is drug dependence. Although there are many social and medical measures to solve this problem, it remains acute and requires attention. Naturally, people are not born with these addictions, so this issue can be considered in terms of planned behavior. Usually, addicted people see in their behavior more positive aspects than negative ones. By taking drugs, they receive positive emotions, thus “learning” that their behavior is beneficial. In addition, they get to a social environment where taking drugs is considered normal. All this leads to new behavioral patterns aimed at satisfying their addiction needs.
As part of the intervention, it is necessary to convey to dependent people their psychological characteristics associated with drug use. This process can occur within the club of anonymous drug addicts, where the presenter will be able to point out to people the reasons for their behavior. A useful detail is to monitor the changes in the behavior of these people through regular anonymous surveys. The range of questions that questionnaires may include is quite broad. Thanks to this, one can understand the level of awareness of the people’s actions and the changes in behavior noted by them. Through this practice, they will be able to develop new, healthy patterns of behavior and be aware of the causes and consequences of their activities.
Such work with people will make it possible to delve into various concepts related to the theory of planned behavior. This will help to learn about the impact of behavior on health, as well as identify the relationship between the degree of dependence of people and their level of culture. In addition, communicating with these people will help to learn more about their social environment, which also affects the development of abnormal behavior. Thus, this intervention may be a useful contribution to other studies on the theory of planned behavior.
Thus, the intervention within the theory of planned behavior consists of the following steps. First, it is necessary to determine how addicted people relate to their behavior, whether they approve of their actions. Then these people should describe the social norms established in their environment. The next step will be to discuss the correctness and success of their behavior. At this stage, people will realize the goals of their actions truly and rethink them. After that, it will become possible to carry out work on the formation of new behavior. This requires regular communication and in-depth knowledge in the field of psychology and training. Thus, this intervention can save a significant number of people from addiction and change their behavior for the better.
Reference
Gross, M. (2017). Planned behavior: The relationship between human thought and action. Routledge.