Self-efficacy, Controllability and Intention in the Theory of Planned Behavior: Measurement Redundancy or Causal Independence?

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Abstract
Empirical research has identified two distinct item clusters used to measure perceived behavioral control (PBC) labeled self-efficacy and controllability. Self-efficacy has been reported as the superior predictor of intention in all research efforts with these PBC factors. However, we argue that the conception of these item clusters originates from backward theorizing and hypothesize that controllability items are better indicators of the originally conceived PBC construct, while self-efficacy taps the measurement domains of both PBC and intention. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate factor distinction with PBC and intention items across disparate samples of 302 undergraduate students and 267 cancer survivors in the exercise domain. Results found the only model with acceptable fit across populations was that of controllability and intention ( h 2 (8) = 6.91, p = 0.55; RMSEA = 0.00; CFI = 1.00 for undergraduates and h 2 (8) = 26.51, p <0.01; RMSEA = 0.09; CFI = 0.97 for cancer survivors) supporting our hypothesis that the controllability concept, but not the self-efficacy factor, has a clean measurement distinction from intention. Further, self-efficacy items showed factor complexity between PBC and intention across both samples, suggesting that self-efficacy may have been reported as superior to controllability in predicting intention due to measurement redundancy rather than meaningful causal influence.