Development of the Health Belief Model Paper

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Project 3: Social Sciences Theory Evaluation

Choose a theory from a social sciences discipline, locate at least 4 scholarly sources on the theory, and then read and annotate your sources. Craft a paper in which you explain your chosen theory, discuss the research on the theory, and apply the theory to your own experiences (or the experiences of others). Your final paper should include an abstract.

Audience: peers/classmates

Format: APA (because the discipline is Social Science)

Purpose: to explore a social science theory, arriving at a conclusion about the (positive/negative) value of the theory

Scope: 1200-1400 words [5-6 pages]

Choose one of the four theories to explore and conduct research in:

  • Health Belief Model: Helps explain health-related behaviors and decisions
  • Social Ecological Model: Helps explain connections between people and their surroundings (environment, society, community)
  • Game Theory: Helps explain decision making in logical, strategic situations (often used in business and economics)
  • Social Identity Theory: Helps explain how people behave based on perception of a group belonging

ORGANIZATION:

Intro:

  • State and explain theory
  • Note who coined term and when
  • State YOUR thesis (what you think about this theory’s usefulness now).

Body paragraphs:

  • Craft 2-4 paragraphs explaining what the current research says about the theory (since it’s development).
  • Craft another 2-4 paragraphs exploring how this theory explains your life experiences and those of people around you.
  • Remember that regardless of the purpose of an given paragraph (explaining existing research OR applying it to your experiences and observations), every one needs to have at least one short direct quotation from one of your four scholarly sources.

Conclusion: Explain why the theory is important a/or why exploring it in this way (personally) is important