Self-determination theory and prediction of health behavior Cover Image

Теория за самодетерминацията и прогнозиране на здравното поведение
Self-determination theory and prediction of health behavior

Author(s): Daniel Petrov
Subject(s): Social Sciences, Psychology, Personality Psychology, Clinical psychology
Published by: Софийски университет »Св. Климент Охридски«
Keywords: self-determination; health behavior; prediction

Summary/Abstract: The aim of the article is to make a theoretical review of self-determination theory and its application to health behavior research. The article introduces fundamental theoretical constructs and presents the various sub-theories of self-determination theory: theory of cognitive evaluation, basic psychological needs theory, theory of organismic integration, theory of causality orientations. The review of recent research studies related to physical health confirms the utility of autonomy support and autonomous motivation in predicting healthier behavioral outcomes and positive behavior change in domains like smoking cessation, weight loss, condom use, glucose control, alcohol addiction, etc.