Theory of Planned Behavior


In psychology, the theory of planned behavior (abbreviated TPB) is a theory that links one’s beliefs and behavior, proposed by Icek Ajzen in 1991.

The theory states that attitude toward behavior, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control, together shape an individual’s behavioral intentions and behaviors.

Attitude toward behavior. This means When a person is faced with a thing about to show the corresponding behavior, first he will produce an attitude towards the performance of the behavior.

Subjective norms. When we define our attitudes to behavior, we also think about the limits that social norms place on our behavior. Pressure from other people in society can affect our behavior.

Perceived behavioral control. After considering social norms, we determine the behavior we ultimately want to perform. This is when we think about whether we can perform the behaviors we want to perform correctly and effectively.


These three factors together determine an individual’s behavioral intentions. Then the behavioral intentions ultimately determine a person’s behavior.

Theory of Planned Behavior》有6条评论

  1. You have clearly explained the 3 key elements – attitude toward behavior, subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control in the theory of planned behavior. I suggest if you can add some your own experience as examples to illustrate, your post will be more interesting.

  2. Hi Jiachang, I think you have done really good job on the definition of TPB and I got to know exactly how it works before I take a true action. However, I suggest you to share some area on listing instance on those definition so that your blog becomes more vivid and readers can catch up with it more easily. Hope to get your reply.

  3. Well, I am totally agree with your understanding of this theory. You mainly analyse the three influence factors of internal beliefs, I really want to know more your ideas about how the intention produce a real behavior. Look forward to having a further discussion.

  4. You gave a very clear explanation of the theory of Planned Behavior. I like your method of presenting the content, which is logical. After reading your post, I finally comprehended the Planned Behavior theory actually consists of three main elements, which include attitude toward behavior, Subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control. Look forward to your further post!

  5. You introduce the theory of Planned Behavior and explain the three factors of attitude, subjective norm as well as perceived behavior control in detail. In general, I agree with your interpretation but it would be better if you combine your own experience with your blog. Looking forward to your respond.

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