The Relative Influence of Attitudes and Subjective Norms from Childhood to Adolescence: Between-Participant and Within-Participant Analyses

Trafimow, D., Brown, J., Grace, K., Thompson, L., & Sheeran, P. (2002). The relative influence of attitudes and subjective norms from childhood to adolescence: Between-participant and within-participant analyses. The American Journal of Psychology, 115(3), 395-414.

313 children and adolescents (ages 8-16) were asked to indicate their behavioral intentions, attitudes, and subjective norms for 34 behaviors. Between-participant and within-participant analyses demonstrated that attitudes and subjective norms were good predictors of behavioral intentions both singly and in combination. In addition, attitudes generally were better predictors than were subjective norms both across behaviors and across participants. Most importantly, however, there were no differences in the relative importance of attitudes and subjective norms in predicting behavioral intentions across age groups.

Find this article online
Site Courtesy of
McKenzie-Mohr & Associates

Expertise in Community-Based Social Marketing