Salient Beliefs Research Articles

Investigating beliefs, attitudes, and intentions regarding green restaurant patronage: An application of the extended theory of planned behavior with moderating effects of gender and age

Abstract This study aims to identify customer belief structures underlying the cognitive process of green restaurant patronage by applying the extended theory of planned behavior (TPB). The extended TPB model includes two additional predictors (past behavior and dining frequency) and two moderators (gender and age) to predict customers’ intention to visit green restaurants. This study followed recommended two-phase survey procedures. Salient beliefs of the target population were elicited in the first phase, and the relationships between those beliefs and other TPB constructs were analyzed in the second phase. Perceived behavioral control emerged as the most significant determinant followed by attitude and subjective norm in the Korean green restaurant context. The findings support the inclusion of past behavior as an additional predictor and confirm the moderating effects of gender and age. This study provides useful implications for effective marketing strategies for green restaurants.

Open-Ended and Closed-Ended Measures of Religious/Spiritual Struggles: A Mixed-Methods Study

Religious and spiritual struggles are typically assessed by self-report scales using closed-ended items, yet nascent research suggests that using open-ended interviews and prompts may complement and advance assessment and theories. In the current mixed-methods study, undergraduate participants (N = 976) completed open-ended descriptions of their religious and spiritual struggles, the Religious and Spiritual Struggles Scale (RSS), and a quantitative measure of religious belief salience. Qualitative description showed that the themes emerging from open-ended descriptions generally fell within the broad domains of the RSS though some descriptions reflected more contextualized struggles. Scores derived from the open-ended responses to assess RSS domains achieved evidence of reliability, and quantitative correlational analyses provided support for convergent and discriminant validity with the RSS. Correlations revealed a mix of similar and divergent associations between methods of assessing religious and spiritual struggles and religious belief salience. Open-ended descriptions of religious and spiritual struggles may yield reliable and valid information that is related to but distinct from assessments relying on closed-ended items.

College students’ underlying beliefs about using e-cigarettes: an application of the reasoned action approach

Background. The purpose of this study was to explore the underlying behavioral beliefs, normative beliefs, and control beliefs about e-cigarette use among college students using the Reasoned Action Approach. Methods. This study used a sequential mixed-methods design over 3 Phases. During Phase 1, salient beliefs were elicited via an online survey (n = 58); chi-square analyses were conducted to examine differences between e-cigarette users and non-users. Using data from Phase 1, we developed survey items and assessed initial factor loadings via a principal component analysis (n = 49) in Phase 2. In Phase 3, the survey was administered to a larger sample of college students (n = 499) to explore the association between participants’ underlying beliefs and the RAA constructs. Results. During Phase 1, no significant differences in salient beliefs were found between e-cigarettes users and non-users; thus, both groups were included in all phases. During Phase 2, 148 items were developed, piloted to test factor loadings, and reduced to 60 items, which loaded onto eight factors (two factors per construct). In Phase 3, we found underlying beliefs, such as believing e-cigarettes would help relieve stress or one’s mentors would not approve of their use, were related to global RAA measures–attitude and injunctive norms, respectively. Conclusions. Overall, our sample of college students endorsed negative beliefs associated with e-cigarette use and did not identify with those who they believed to use these products. Parents were important referents for this sample, whose opinions may influence college students’ behavioral decision-making process.

Dopamine manipulations modulate paranoid social inferences in healthy people

Altered dopamine transmission is thought to influence the formation of persecutory delusions. However, despite extensive evidence from clinical studies there is little experimental evidence on how modulating the dopamine system changes social attributions related to paranoia, and the salience of beliefs more generally. Twenty seven healthy male participants received 150mg L-DOPA, 3 mg haloperidol, or placebo in a double-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled study, over three within-subject sessions. Participants completed a multi-round Dictator Game modified to measure social attributions, and a measure of belief salience spanning themes of politics, religion, science, morality, and the paranormal. We preregistered predictions that altering dopamine function would affect (i) attributions of harmful intent and (ii) salience of paranormal beliefs. As predicted, haloperidol reduced attributions of harmful intent across all conditions compared to placebo. L-DOPA reduced attributions of harmful intent in fair conditions compared to placebo. Unexpectedly, haloperidol increased attributions of self-interest about opponents’ decisions. There was no change in belief salience within any theme. These results could not be explained by scepticism or subjective mood. Our findings demonstrate the selective involvement of dopamine in social inferences related to paranoia in healthy individuals.

Perspectives of pregnant women, family members and health professionals on medication adherence in Nigeria

ABSTRACT Nigeria has the highest burden of mother-to-child transmission of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) worldwide. Pregnant women living with HIV in Nigeria face challenges adhering to antiretroviral therapy (ART). We explored the perspectives of pregnant women living with HIV, family members, friends and health professionals to understand adherence to ART. Pregnant women, family members, friends and health professionals recruited from four HIV treatment sites in Nigeria participated in semi-structured interviews and focus groups. Thematic analysis was conducted and themes and sub-themes were mapped against the Theory of Planned Behaviour comprising behavioural, normative and control beliefs. Overall, 74 participants took part in the study. Common behavioural beliefs comprised maintaining the mother's and unborn child's health and success of having HIV-negative children from previous pregnancies. Common normative beliefs involved partner and family support for medication taking and medication refill visits. Common control beliefs comprised fear of discrimination and stigmatisation. Results showed that adherence to ART in pregnancy is intricate. Hence, before interventions are developed to change adherence behaviours in pregnant women tailored strategies should be devised that address the salient beliefs that influence adherence during pregnancy.

Belief Salience, Religious Activities, Frequency of Prayer Offering, Religious Offering Preference and Mental Health: A Study of Religiosity Among Muslim Students.

To investigate role of belief salience, participation in religious activities, religious offering preference and prayer offering positively predicts mental health among university students. It is a cross-sectional research design carried out in International Islamic University Islamabad, February 2018 to August 2018. Demographic variables were assessed by collecting information about age, education, marital status, family income and socioeconomic status. Mental Health Inventory-38 was used to measure mental health of the students, and in order to measure religiosity, Religiosity Measure Scale tapping belief salience, religious activities, frequency of prayer offering and religious offering preference was used. The results of the present study were analyzed through SPSS 21v. For computation of the findings, regression analysis and t test were applied. Study found that involvement in religious activities, prayer offering and belief salience positively predicts mental health among university students. Along with that, female students were also found to be highly involved in prayer offerings, religious offering preference and belief salience. However, there were no significant gender differences on participation in religious activities and mental health. It is recommended that development and enhancement of belief salience and religiosity in treatment of Muslim clients with psychological issues may boost their mental health. Therefore, these may be incorporated in treatment models.

Creating patient-centered radiology reports to empower patients undergoing prostate magnetic resonance imaging.

As we progress to an era when patient autonomy and shared decision-making are highly valued, there is a need to also have effective patient-centered communication tools. Radiology reports are designed for clinicians and can be very technical and difficult for patients to understand. It is important for patients to understand their magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) report in order to make an informed treatment decision with their physician. Therefore, we aimed to create a patient-centered prostate MRI report to give our patients a better understanding of their clinical condition. A prototype patient-centered radiology report (PACERR) was created by identifying items to include based on opinions sought from a group of patients undergoing prostate MRI and medical experts. Data was collected in semi-structured interviews using a salient belief question. A prototype PACERR was created in collaboration with human factors engineering and design, medical imaging, biomedical informatics, and cancer patient education groups. Fifteen patients and eight experts from urology, radiation oncology, radiology, and nursing participated in this study. Patients were particularly interested to have a report with laymen terms, concise language, contextualization of values, definitions of medical terms, and next course of action. Everyone believed the report should include the risk of MRI findings actually being cancer in the subsequent biopsy. A prostate MRI PACERR has been developed to communicate the most important findings relevant to decision-making in prostate cancer using patient-oriented design principles. The ability of this tool to improve patient knowledge and communication will be explored.

Unlocking the smart home: exploring key factors affecting the smart lock adoption intention

PurposeThis study examines the factorial structure of salient user beliefs associated with smart locks. We also examine the predictive value of the identified constructs on the smart lock adoption intention and we evaluate gender differences in the predictive value of the identified constructs.Design/methodology/approachThe study assumes pragmatic epistemological stance and it leverages mixed-methods research design. The research progresses through three stages: belief elicitation, exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis within a nomological network. New groups of participants were recruited for each stage of the study.FindingsWe find that while potential adopters express a broad range of perceived benefits and concerns associated with smart locks, only the perceived relative advantage of smart locks vis-à-vis conventional locks in providing safety and security is significantly correlated with adoption intention for both genders. We also find that perceived novel benefits are a significant predictor of the smart lock adoption intention for women, but not for men.Research limitations/implicationsOur results indicate that perceived relative advantage can be the singular critical consideration in the adoption of smart home technologies that replace incumbent solutions. The results also demonstrate that gender-specific models can better capture gender effects that influence technology adoption and use.Practical implicationsSmart home technology vendors would need to convince prospective users that new technology is better than the incumbent solutions on the core affordances of the incumbent technology. Men and women differ in the consideration of novel benefits afforded by novel technologies.Originality/valueThis is among the first studies to examine salient beliefs that affect smart home technology adoption. The findings suggest that the traditional models (TAM, UTAUT) do not capture the key salient beliefs that can influence innovative smart home technology adoption. The study also suggests that gendered models are needed to understand technology adoption in contexts where technology adoption intersects with gender roles.

Understanding the Influence of Belief and Belief Revision on Consumers’ Purchase Intention of Liquid Milk

An unsustainable milk value chain can make consumers’ retention of preferences fragile, leading to a reduction in belief. One of the major ways of changing this belief is “belief revision” which accounts an interaction between a change in an individual’s preference with reference to its source and a belief expectancy and affects consumers’ behavioral intentions effectively. As there is little research on belief revision, the present study aims to investigate the impact of belief revision on purchase intention under an extended model for the theory of planned behavior. In doing so, the data were collected via a survey design regarding buying and drinking of liquid milk (LM) of the urban area. Principal component analysis and the binary logit model were the main research methods employed to analyze the data. The results of the study show that in a high level of belief expectancy, consumers’ behavioral belief revision and control belief have a negative effect, and the strength of behavioral belief has a positive significant effect on the purchase intention of LM. Moreover, among three social cognitive factors (attitude, subjective norm, perceived behavioral control [PBC]), only the PBC is associated positively and significantly with the purchase intention of LM, while no modal salient belief (beliefs, belief expectancies, belief values) affects the social cognitive factors. The study fundamentally adds to the literature, in that it first demonstrates the significance of belief revision in assessing the purchase intention.

Using tellability to analyze entrepreneurial narratives in the classroom

Abstract A comprehensive theoretical review suggests that tellability can be used to understand life stories, how stories are constructed, the social context shaping storytelling, and how stories function as a mode of thought. However, the complex and multi-dimensional nature of tellability has been overlooked. This study analyzes one Chinese teacher’s storytelling of six entrepreneurs’ stories as an example, aiming to demonstrate that tellability is structurally embedded within an entire story. Interpreting the stories with reference to the classroom setting reveals that entrepreneurial narratives are tellable because they institutionalize culturally salient values and beliefs about entrepreneurship, they are pedagogically meaningful, and they provide an epistemological tool for listeners to constitute their future reality. This paper argues that an analysis on tellability, informed by multiple theories and recognizant of its structural, social, ontological and epistemological nature, is effective to understand teachers’ storytelling in classrooms and unpack the meanings of stories in more detail.

Smart users for smart technologies: Investigating the intention to adopt smart energy consumption behaviors

Smart grid technologies have the potential to overcome several environmental, social, and technical problems associated with the current electricity production and consumption modes. However, the adoption of smart grids requires a change in users’ behavior. This study investigates the individual-level motivational factors that affect the intention to adopt “smart consumption and production behaviors”. Understanding these factors is important for implementing effective behavioral change initiatives that would facilitate the diffusion of smart grids. Ajzen's theory of planned behavior is applied to explain the formation of such an adoption intention. With a questionnaire survey distributed to a random sample of consumers, an elicitation study is conducted to obtain salient modal beliefs. Data collected from the main survey are analyzed using structural equation modeling. Consistent with the theory, the results of the structural equation analysis reveals that attitude, subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control positively affect the adoption intention. Specifically, the study finds that the variable with the highest estimated loading factor perceived behavioral control, and the most important belief linked with attitude is energy savings. Further investigation indicates that the added exogenous variable, resistance to change, has a negative influence on intention. Results confirm the explanatory power of the theoretical model and provide valuable knowledge for individuals and institutions interested in facilitating the diffusion of smart grids via the implementation of behavioral change initiatives.

Understanding the intention of smallholder farmers to adopt fish production

In Brazil, smallholder farmers living in rural settlements face poverty and food insecurity. To alleviate such problems, Brazilian government has used policy instruments to stimulate farmers to adopt fish production. It is expected that the adoption of fish production provides better nutrition for households and increase farmers’ income. However, the adoption rate is beyond governmental expectations. A possible explanation for the low adoption rate is that policy instruments overlook how farmers in rural settlements decide to adopt novel production activities, such as fishing. Theory of planned behavior was used to deeper the understanding of how farmers can be motivated to adopt fish production. The objectives were: to identify the impact of socio-psychological constructs (i.e. attitude, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control and self-identity) on farmers’ intention to adopt fish production; and to identify the salient beliefs underlying farmers’ intention to adopt fish production. Results suggest that self-identity, attitude, and subjective norms impact on farmers’ intention to adopt fish production. Salient behavioral beliefs that represent possible outcomes of adopting fish production were: “having an increase on farm income”, “having an additional source of food for own consumption”, “having a better quality of life”. Salient normative beliefs that represent important others for farmers were based upon the opinion of “sons/daughters”, “spouse”, “friends”, “neighbors”, “rural cooperatives”, “farmers’ unions”, “farmers’ associations”, “governmental institutions”. Salient control beliefs that represent factors that would facilitate farmers to adopt fish production were: “having an easy way to sell fish production”, “having financial incentive from government”, “Having free technical assistance”, “Having more knowledge about fish production”, and “Having river water flowing in the rural lot”. From a policy perspective, our results highlight the importance of interventions targeted to prime an identity of fish farmers. Interventions will also benefit from strategies to develop more favorable attitude towards adoption of fish production and to increase social support.

Fulfillment of higher-order psychological needs through technology: The case of smart thermostats

Smart home technologies (SHTs), such as smart thermostats, are a growing commercial opportunity. SHTs can offer a broad spectrum of potential functional, experiential and esthetic benefits, yet much of the prior research on the adoption of SHTs has been limited by a narrow TAM-based functional view. Relatively little is known about the salient user beliefs related to the experiential and esthetic benefits of SHTs that may affect SHT adoption. To address this gap in research, we conduct a mixed-methods study, wherein we inductively develop a set of factors that reflect salient user considerations associated with smart thermostats and we examine the effects of the elicited factors on the smart thermostat adoption intention. We find that performance expectancy, emphasized by TAM, has a relatively minor effect on the smart thermostat adoption intention and effort expectancy has no effect at all. We identify a novel factor, which we term techno-coolness, as the key predictor of the adoption intention in this context. Techno-coolness is a multidimensional construct that encompasses the perceptions that the technology can make a home look modern and futuristic, can make the user feel technologically advanced, and can be fun to use. Techno-coolness reveals that the technology capacity to fulfill higher-order psychological needs can dominate purely functional considerations in innovative technology adoption decisions.

“Learning lords” and “ink in your stomach”: eliciting Chinese EFL students’ beliefs about classroom participation

ABSTRACT Drawing from the theory of planned behavior, we conducted a belief elicitation study to gain insights on what considerations guide Chinese English-as-foreign-language students’ decision to participate in English during class. We used four semistructured focus groups (in Chinese) to explore salient beliefs from a total of 34 Chinese university students enrolled in a Sino-American international branch campus. Results suggest that participants considered attentive listening as an integral part of their decisions about classroom participation, probably given their precollege education experience. They also perceived participation to be an effective means to improve English skills and to acquire a Western mindset, but also a frustrating practice that can waste class time and generate anxiety. Finally, through verbal and nonverbal communication, both instructors and classmates played a crucial role in affecting these students’ intention to participate in English during class. Ultimately, we discuss practical pedagogical implications as well as relevant theoretical implications.

Willingness to Seek Help for Depression in Young African American Adults: Study Protocol.

BackgroundIn the United States, among those living with mental illness, 81% of African American (AA) young adults do not seek treatment compared with 66% of their white counterparts. Although the literature has identified unique culturally related factors that impact help seeking among AAs, limited information exists regarding the development and evaluation of interventions that incorporate these unique factors.ObjectiveThis study aims to describe a study protocol designed to develop a culturally relevant, theory-based, psychoeducational intervention for AA young adults; to determine if exposure to the intervention impacts AA young adults’ willingness to seek help; and to determine whether cultural factors and stigma add to the prediction of willingness to seek help.MethodsThe Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) and Barrera and Castro’s framework for cultural adaptation of interventions were used as guiding frameworks. In stage 1 (information gathering), a literature review and three focus groups were conducted to identify salient cultural beliefs. Using stage 1 results, the intervention was designed in stage 2 (preliminary adaptation design), and in stage 3 (preliminary adaptation tests), the intervention was tested using pretest, posttest, and 3-month follow-up surveys. An experimental, mixed methods, prospective one-group intervention design was employed, and the primary outcomes were participants’ willingness and intention to seek help for depression and actual help-seeking behavior.ResultsThis study was funded in May 2016 and approved by the University of Texas at Austin institutional review board. Data were collected from November 2016 to March 2016. Of the 103 students who signed up to participate in the study, 70 (67.9%) completed the pre- and posttest surveys. The findings are expected to be submitted for publication in 2020.ConclusionsThe findings from this research are expected to improve clinical practice by providing empirical evidence as to whether a culturally relevant psychoeducational intervention is useful for improving help seeking among young AAs. It will also inform future research and intervention development involving the TPB and willingness to seek help by identifying the important factors related to willingness to seek help. Advancing this field of research may facilitate improvements in help-seeking behavior among AA young people and reduce the associated mental health disparities that apparently manifest early on.International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID)DERR1-10.2196/16267

“To use or not to use” understanding mountaineers’ smartphone use in high-alpine environments

As smartphone use continues to become more embedded within daily life, identifying the factors driving their use in extreme environments may have numerous meaningful implications. Little is currently known about mountaineers’ intentions to use smartphones in high-alpine environments. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine the extent to which attitude, subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control predicted mountaineers’ intentions to use smartphones in high-alpine environments. A sample of 167 mountaineers from 37 countries completed a brief questionnaire about their intentions to use smartphones during their next high-alpine expedition. A series of multiple regression analyses were used to determine the salient beliefs influencing mountaineers’ smartphone use in high-alpine environments. The study findings provide a better understanding of the potential factors driving mountaineers’ use of smartphones. More broadly, these findings add to the growing body of literature regarding smartphone use in extreme environments.

Beliefs Related to Expectant Father’s Support for Exclusive Breastfeeding in Nigeria

Fathers are an essential element in the social context of breastfeeding . This study identified salient beliefs about expectant fathers’ support for 6 months Exclusive Breastfeeding. A purposive sample of 39 expectant men aged 33.67 ± 7.02 years resident in Ikenne LGA Nigeria participated. An open-ended theory of planned behaviour based questionnaire was used to collect data. Thematic content analysis followed by a frequency count was used to identify the modal salient beliefs. The salient beliefs were 30: twelve behavioral, 12 normative, and 6 control. Behavioural modal beliefs were that support of 6 months exclusive breastfeeding would motivate a brainy (56%), strong (41%) and generally healthy child (38%). Normative modal beliefs were that grandmothers (26%), family (26%) and health workers approve, while friends (21%) disapprove. Control modal beliefs were time (21%) and nature of work (21%). Beliefs influencing expectant fathers support are similar to those influencing mothers breastfeeding decisions. These can be used in the development of father-focused breastfeeding promotion interventions. Keywords: Beliefs, breastfeeding support, breastfeeding promotion, exclusive breastfeeding, fathers Nigeria DOI: 10.7176/JCSD/56-05 Publication date: February 29 th 2020

Assessing Medicare Patients' Salient Beliefs to Improve Annual Wellness Visit Health Outcomes.

OBJECTIVE: To identify key beliefs that influence behavior, regarding Medicare's Annual Wellness Visit (AWV) and older patients' willingness to implement personalized prevention plans.<br/> DESIGN: Cross-sectional. In-depth semi-structured focus group sessions with Medicare patients in July 2018.<br/> SETTING: Two primary care physician-based practices.<br/> INTERVENTION: A trained moderator facilitated two focus group sessions, and used open-ended questions based on the theory of planned behavior to elicit behavioral, normative, and control beliefs associated with implementing personalized prevention plans.<br/> MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Content analysis of the focus groups' transcribed data was used to identify modal salient beliefs. Transcribed focus group sessions were analyzed utilizing grounded-theory methods for emergent themes.<br/> RESULTS: A total of 13 older patients participated in the focus group sessions. Prevalent behavioral beliefs among participants influenced by patient-centered care outcomes included improvement in physical activity, adopting a healthy balanced diet, and weight loss.<br/> Interpersonal and environmental disparities influenced commonly reported control factors such as lack of support at home and affordable fitness facilities. Macro-level influences such as physicians and social marketing by insurance providers, and health partners and spousal support were identified as important normative factors.<br/> CONCLUSION: Identified salient beliefs were congruent to social determinants of health in Medicare patients. Results of the study demonstrate perceived enablers and barriers of elderly patients regarding implementing health-promoting advice. AWV pharmacists should address perceived barriers to improve attitudes and self-efficacy; and incorporate enabling beliefs into adherence strategies to improve adoption of health recommendations.

Teachers’ beliefs to integrate Web 2.0 technology in their pedagogy and their influence on attitude, perceived norms, and perceived behavior control

Insight in three modal sets of teachers’ salient beliefs (i.e. the outcome, normative, and control beliefs) facilitate the development of effective interventions to elevate Web 2.0 technologies use in constructivist pedagogy in higher education. In line with the Reasoned Action Approach (Fishbein & Ajzen, 2010), modal sets of teachers’ salient beliefs directly affect attitudes, perceived norms, and perceived behavior control—the proximal variables that are the main determinants of teachers’ intention to use or not to use Web 2.0 technologies. Bivariate correlation analyses showed that beliefs from the modal sets correlated significantly with the corresponding proximal variable. Implications are that to increase attitude of non-intending teachers, advantageous outcome beliefs should be promoted whereas for intending teachers, disadvantageous outcome beliefs should be countered as well. To increase perceived norms, students and near colleagues were the main normative referents. Different control beliefs were exhibited for non-intending and intending teachers in order to raise perceived behavioral control.

Identifying consumer’s last-mile logistics beliefs in omni-channel environment

Over the past few years, retailers have offered new alternatives in last-mile logistics for consumers’ purchases; however, still, it is unclear why consumers select one option over another. A significant number of studies have tried to give some guidance, but very little research has considered the consumer’s point of view; specifically, in Omni-channel environment it has been undiscovered. To fulfil this gap, this study tends to identify some beliefs that may affect consumers’ behaviour in last-mile logistics. However, to validate these beliefs this study uses the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) approach. Following the TPB, this study employs an online questionnaire to obtain 280 samples of Spanish students. The final results show that although some beliefs such as convenience, risk of time, and finances are consistent with previous studies, there are new salient beliefs in which have not been identified before: Accessibility & Comparability. As a conclusion, this study not only is an effective mechanism for predicting the intention of selecting a last-mile logistics by consumers, but also can be guidance and assistance for practitioners to develop proper strategies for facilitating consumer’s shopping journey, and ultimately, improving consumer’s satisfaction.