Habit versus Intention - The Impact of Cognitive Theory on Human and Computer Development - page 44

CHAPTER 6
Habit versus Intention
Introduction
The theory of planned developmental behavior includes support for the notion that intention
plays a large role in research and design decision making, yet Lindbladh and Lyttkens (2002)
addressed an alternate view, namely the dominance of habit as ingrained and deep-rooted.
The decision-making process indicates differences in the way individuals proceed to devel-
opmental behaviors or continue with old, once-suitable patterns. Developmental behavior
decisions depend upon prior actions, such as when the regular occurrence of previous habits
prevails over the choice to try new options (Lindbladh and Lyttkens).
Ajzen (2002) questioned whether prior computer science development is the best predict-
or of future computer science development and expressed doubt that humans are creatures of
habit who will continue doing what they are familiar with. He indicated the prior frequency
of performance is independent of later intentions and denied that the existence of a resid-
ual effect of the past on future computer science development is solely credited to habitu-
ation. In accordance with the theory of planned computer science development, associations
of intention and perceived developmental control should serve to fully extricate the effects
of previous experiences on subsequent actions. Although it may be true that with repeated
performance, many cognitive and developmental behaviors become so routine that they are
done unconsciously, initially the behaviors arise from specific intention and self-regulation
(Ajzen, p. 110).
Ajzen (2002) described the process of routinization as the assumption that repeated per-
formance of a developmental behavior produces habituation. Stimulus cues help to control
developmental behavior in the formation of habit; therefore, a future comparable situation or
recurring stimulus cue may serve to instigate the automatic response (Ajzen, p. 144). Ajzen
hypothesized the formation of habit will only occur if the stimulus is stable and, from the
reasoned action standpoint, if the developmental behavior gets direction from automatically
activated spontaneous attitudes and intentions. The repetition of the developmental behavior
may stem from the stability of cognitive and motivational factors, rather than the strength
of the habitation, which may be unchanged and in attendance every time the developmental
behavior is under examination (Ajzen, p. 113).
Ajzen (2002) posited developmental behavior performance is likely based on both inten-
tion and habit, with strength of habit stemming from the frequency of performance of the
developmental behavior (p. 113). Ajzen purported no compulsory link exists between the