preview

Planned Behaviour Theory

Better Essays
Open Document

This study investigates whether young adults prefer to minimise risk whilst maximising reward, which can be illustrated through the Theory of Planned Behaviour. The study involved 696 undergraduates who had to choose between two stimuli to gain points. This was done in two stages, with 152 trials altogether. After the trials, subjects had to participate in a questionnaire to analyse how risky they perceived themselves to be. High variability and low variability results were compared and it was shown to be of significance difference in stage two. Overall, the results suggested a person’s preference was to choose the option with the least risk to gain the maximum reward as past experience and beliefs impact on a person’s choice seen through the …show more content…

They studied the influence factors such as past behaviour, sensation seeking and comparative judgement to risk had on 3002 French drivers aged 18-25, and distinguished according to gender and driving experience. As a result, it was found that decision making was influenced mostly by attitude, normative variables and past behaviours. The final regression model showed 72% of the adjustment in drivers. It explained that men had a slightly higher intention to speed than women, and the impact of sensation seeking and injunction norms was stronger in men. It also highlighted that speeding intentions increased with driving experience. The study suggests that each group had a different influence that effected them the most. The influence of sensation seeking was stronger among the novices, normative influence was strong for the beginners and perceived behavioural control had the greatest impact among the more experienced drivers, highlighting how different behaviours influence people …show more content…

After picking a response a number of points would be given. In stage one either 10 or 15 points were given depending on the response chosen. In stage 2 the outcomes were varied by adding a random number of points to the outcome on each trial. Participants either received high randomness (+ or – 6 points) or low randomness (+ or – 3 points). After the two stages, participants completed a questionnaire on how risky they perceive themselves to be. Subjects were subsequently debriefed and instructed not to inform other participants of the nature of the

Get Access