Title: Predisposing factors
Course: Level 3 - Health Education and Promotion > Section: Factors affecting human behaviour

These are an internal mental apparatus which provide the rationale or motivation for the behavior to occur. Some of these are as follows:

A. Knowledge is knowing things, objects, events, persons, situations and everything in the universe. It is the collection and storage of information or experience. It often comes from experience. We also gain knowledge through information provided by teachers, parents, friends, books, newspapers, etc... Knowledge is usually needed but is not enough on its own for individuals or groups to change their behavior. For example, for an individual to use condom, he has to have knowledge about condom and develop a positive attitude towards utilisation of condom.

B. Belief is a conviction that a phenomenon or object is true or real. Beliefs deal with people understands of themselves and their environment. People usually do not know whether what they believe is true or false. The important thing is that beliefs don't always coincide with facts; they are usually derived from our parents, grandparents, and other people we respect. Beliefs may be helpful, harmful or neutral. For example, a certain society may have the following beliefs: Holding materials made of iron by mothers during postpartum (Neutral), Diarrhea may end up with death (helpful), and Measles cannot be prevented by immunization (harmful).

C. Attitudes are relatively constant feelings, predispositions or set of beliefs directed towards an object, person or situation. They are evaluative feelings and reflect our likes and dislikes. They often come from our experiences or from those of people close to us. They either attract us to things or make wary of them. For example, w/o Almaz had fever and visited the nearby health center. The staff on duty that day was very busy and shouted at her, "Do you want us to waste our time for a mild fever? Come back when we are less busy." She did not like being shouted at. This experience gave her bad attitude toward the health staff. This bad attitude could discourage her from attending the health center next time she is sick. Attitudes are different from beliefs in that they are evaluative or judgmental about whether that something or someone is good or bad. Attitudes is also bi-polar (there is negative and positive attitude)

D. Values are broad ideas and widely held assumptions regarding what are morally or ethically desirable, correct, and good and write or wrong, that most members of a society share about health issues or anything else. For example, being married and having many children are highly valued in most Ethiopian community (ethical or moral value). Values provide us with criteria, ideas and justifications by which we evaluate people, objects and events as their relative worth, merit, beauty or morality. Values are considered to be more entrenched or deep rooted and thus less open to change than knowledge, beliefs or attitudes. Values are also so general and abstract that they do not explicitly specify which behaviors are acceptable and which are not (conflicting values). For example, a teenage male may place a high value on living a long life; at the same time, he may engage in risky behaviors such as chewing khat and drinking alcohol.

E. Self-efficacy, self-regulatory or self-control process in which an individual beliefs on one's own ability to complete the task or a behavior and reach goals or objectives. For example, Thanks to my resourcefulness and ability to figure things out, I know how to handle unexpected or unforeseen situations.