Attitude formation under the theory of reasoned action and a purposeful behaviour reformulation

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Abstract
Evaluations in the expectancy‐value model have been construed as either moral (good/bad) or affective (pleasant/unpleasant) reactions to the consequences of an act. After pointing out that neither evaluation is suitable for representing the motivational component of attitude in some cases of interest, this paper proposes a more general reconceptualization based on subjective conditional approach/avoidance reactions. All three possibilities are then tested on two independent samples of 110 persons each through hierarchial regression procedures. Although measures of each type of evaluation achieved high levels of reliability, only the subjective conditional approach/avoidance measures were found to combine validly with beliefs to predict attitudes towards the act of giving blood. The proposed model also raises a number of research issues with respect to the antecedents of evaluations and in so doing deepens the explanatory base of theories of attitude formation and the prediction of behaviour.

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