Isolating Attitudinal and Normative Influences in Behavioral Intentions Models

Abstract

Behavioral intentions often have been used as a surrogate for actual behavior in choice models and to reflect the impact of marketing variables. The Fishbein behavioral intentions model posits two determinants of behavioral intentions: a personal or attitudinal component and a social influence or normative component. The authors use an experimental methodology to examine aspects of this model's construct validity. Certain operational problems are identified and related to underlying conceptual difficulties in separating these two components.