Intention is the cognitive
representation of a person’s readiness to perform a
given behaviour, and it is considered to be the immediate
antecedent of behaviour.
This
intention is determined
by
three factors:
i) attitudes (considered as
beliefs
that a person accumulates over
his lifetime), ii)
subjective
norms
(beliefs about what
others will think
about
behaviour)
and,
iii) perceived
behavioural
control
(refers
to people’s
perceptions of their ability to perform
a
given
behaviour).
As
a general rule,
the more favourable
the attitude and the subjective
norm,
and the
greater
the perceived
control, the stronger the person’s
intention
should be to perform
the behaviour
in question.
Intention
is measured as the probability,
rated by
the
subject
itself, that s/he will perform
the behaviour.