Action and Inaction in a Social World
Predicting and Changing Attitudes and Behavior

This book explains how actions and inactions arise and change in social contexts, including social media.

Dolores Albarracín (Author)

9781108840002, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 18 February 2021

300 pages
23.5 x 15.8 x 2.7 cm, 0.71 kg

'This is a beautifully written book by a brilliant scholar that presents an important, original synthesis of work on attitudes and behavior in critical new ways. Researchers, scholars, students, and those doing conceptual or applied work on attitudes and behavior will find it invaluable to their work.' Jeffrey D. Fisher, Board of Trustees' Distinguished Professor of Psychology, University of Connecticut

This book explains how actions and inactions arise and change in social contexts, including social media and face-to-face communication. Its multidisciplinary perspective covers research from psychology, communication, public health, business studies, and environmental sciences. The reader can use this cutting-edge approach to design and interpret effects of behavioral change interventions as well as replicate the materials and methods implemented to study them. The author provides an organized set of principles that take the reader from the formation of attitudes and goals, to the structure of action and inaction. It also reflects on how cognitive processes explain excesses of action while inaction persists elsewhere. This practical guide summarises the best practices persuasion and behavioral interventions to promote changes in health, consumer, and social behaviors.

Part I: Introduction: 1. Definitions, Overview, Goals, and Principles of Cognitive Processing
Part II: Beliefs, Attitudes and Behaviors: 2. Beliefs
3. Attitudes
4. Goals, Intentions, and Behavior
Part III: Influences of The Past and The Situation: 5. The Impact of Past Experience and Past Behavior on Attitudes and Behavior
6. The Impact of Others on Attitudes and Behaviors
Part IV: The Impact Of Persuasive Communications and Behavioral Interventions: 7. The Processing of Persuasive Communications and Behavioral Interventions
8. Persuasive Communications and Behavioral Interventions in The Context of Prior Attitudes and Behaviors
9. Sources of Information, Actionability, and Behavioral Impact of Persuasive Communications and Behavioral Interventions
10. Conclusions and Future Directions.

Subject Areas: Cognition & cognitive psychology [JMR], Social, group or collective psychology [JMH], Psychology [JM], Social theory [JHBA], Society & culture: general [JF]