Table 1 Definitions of the theoretical domains [37] (Definitions are based on definitions from the American Psychological Associations’ Dictionary of Psychology [75])
Theoretical domain | Definition |
|---|---|
Knowledge | An awareness of the existence of something |
Skills | An ability or proficiency acquired through practice |
Social/professional role and identity | A coherent set of behaviors and displayed personal qualities of an individual in a social or work setting |
Beliefs about capabilities | Acceptance of the truth, reality, or validity about an ability, talent, or facility that a person can put to constructive use |
Optimism | The confidence that things will happen for the best or that desired goals will be attained |
Beliefs about consequences | Acceptance of the truth, reality, or validity about outcomes of a behavior in a given situation |
Reinforcement | Increasing the probability of a response by arranging a dependent relationship, or contingency, between the response and a given stimulus |
Intentions | A conscious decision to perform a behavior or a resolve to act in a certain way |
Goals | Mental representations of outcomes or end states that an individual wants to achieve |
Memory, attention and decision processes | The ability to retain information, focus selectively on aspects of the environment and choose between two or more alternatives |
Environmental context and resources | Any circumstance of a person’s situation or environment that discourages or encourages the development of skills and abilities, independence, social competence, and adaptive behavior |
Social influences | Those interpersonal processes that can cause individuals to change their thoughts, feelings, or behaviours |
Emotion | A complex reaction pattern, involving experiential, behavioral, and physiological elements, by which the individual attempts to deal with a personally significant matter or event |
Behavioral regulation | Anything aimed at managing or changing objectively observed or measured actions |