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The Health Belief Model relates psychological theories of decision making (which attempt to explain action in a choice situation) to an individual's decision about alternative health behaviors. Rosenstock 1 has attributed the origins of that tradition of behavior motivation theory underlying the Health Belief Model to Lewinian 2 theory of goal setting in the level-of-aspiration situation (a special case of the latter's general field theory). Lewin and associates hypothesized that behavior depends mainly upon two variables: (1) the value placed by an individual on a particular outcome and (2) the individual's estimate of the likelihood that a given action will result in that outcome. POST-LEWINIAN MODELSSince the seminal work of Lewin and his colleagues, five other predictive and parallel models have been advanced to describe action in situations involving risk taking or decision making under uncertainty: (1 ) Tolman's analysis of performance behavior, (2) Rotter's 5 concept of reinforcement or "social learning," (3) Edwards' 8.7 decision theory model of Subjective Expected Utility (SEU) ( 4 ) Atkinson's 8 view of risk-taking behavior as a theory of achievement motivation, and (5) Feather's @,10 analysis of decision making under uncertainty.This approach to predicting behavior is often termed "valueexpectancy." These models of motivation focus primarily on general attainments and changes of the whole organism in relation to its environment ("molar" behavior) rather than on an isolated reaction

The interactive seminar based on theories of self-regulation led to patient-physician encounters that were of shorter duration, had significant impact on the prescribing and communications behavior of physicians, led to more favorable patient responses to physicians' actions, and led to reductions in health care utilization.