Using the Integrative Model of Behavioral Prediction to Understand College Students’ Hookup Sex Beliefs, Intentions, and Behaviors

Abstract

Guided by the integrated model of behavioral prediction, this study explored the attitudinal, normative, and perceived control beliefs that predict college student hookup intentions and behavior. We first conducted elicitation research with six focus groups of undergraduate students to identify salient beliefs to inform questionnaire development, and then we collected and analyzed questionnaire data from 268 undergraduate students to explore the direct and indirect determinants that drive hookup behaviors. We compared proposed models that tested separate paths from determinants to intention and behavior to theoretical models that treated intention as a mediator of the determinant-behavior relationship. The results indicate that in both the proposed and theoretical models, direct and indirect attitudes were the strongest predictors of intentions and behavior. Positive attitude beliefs were consistently and significantly correlated with both intention and behavior, while only select normative and control beliefs were so correlated. Finally, although the data fit both the proposed and theoretical models, the proposed models provided a more accurate fit. We discuss theoretical and practical implications of our results, and we offer directions for future research.