BACKGROUND Research on the motivational model proposed by Self-Determination Theory (SDT) provides theoretically sound insights into reasons why people adopt and maintain exercise and other health behaviors, and allows for a meaningful analysis of the motivational processes involved in behavioral self-regulation. Although obesity is notoriously difficult to reverse and its recidivism is high, a...

BACKGROUND Use of communication theories in the development of pictorial health warning labels (graphic warning labels) for cigarette packaging might enhance labels' impact on motivation to quit, but research has been limited, particularly among low socioeconomic status (SES) populations in the U.S. This qualitative study explored perceptions of theory-based graphic warning labels and their rol...

The mathematical approach to understand the genetic impact on human behavior, e.g., using game theory, tends to assume that evolution creates optimal fitness. However, evolution does not necessarily create optimal behavioral patterns, particularly not when the environment is rapidly changing. Consequently some of the inferences based on game theory are misleading. More specifically, certain asp...

The motivated distance perception theory (Balcetis, 2015) paradoxically is too parsimonious to account for a variety of findings, including those of the author. The theory poorly defines the features of eliciting situations, which fails to constrain the theory making it non-falsifiable and allows for post-hoc interpretation of the effects. Finally, the theory ignores the complexity of the motiv...

Critics of the “New” Natural Law (NNL) theory have raised questions about role divine in that theory. This paper considers regard to its account human rights: can NNL rights be sustained without a more or less explicit advertence “the question God’s existence nature will”? It might seem Finnis’s “elaborate sketch” includes full even prior introduction his reflections on concluding chapter and R...

conclusions our results demonstrated that mi, combined with the implementation of intention intervention, increased weight loss and pmt construct scores in our study population. results in the two intervention groups, the pmt construct scores, namely susceptibility (p = 0.001), severity (p = 0.001), rewards (p =0.004), self-efficacy (p = 0.001), response efficacy (p = 0.001), and costs (p = 0.0...

Progress toward understanding human behavior has been hindered by disciplinebound theories, dividing our efforts. Fortunately, these separate endeavors are converging and can be effectively integrated. Focusing on the fundamental features of picoeconomics, expectancy theory, cumulative prospect theory, and need theory, we construct a temporal motivational theory (TMT). TMT appears consistent wi...

The present study used self-determination theory to examine adolescents' motivations to engage in charitable donating and community volunteering and to abstain from sexual intercourse and marijuana use. The sample consisted of 419 late adolescents recruited from across the country through an online survey panel. Participants completed online measures of motivations to engage in donating and vol...