Is Information- Motivation - Behavioral Skills Model Appropriate for Interventions on Health Education and Promotion?

One of the newest and the most comprehensive models for the behavior change is Information- Motivation- Behavioral skills (IMB) model. It is both simple and economic, and is of proper efficacy in the studies. IMB model as a health behavior change model is based on integration of the theories in social psychology and health education and promotion, emphasizing on information, motivation and behavioral skills as the basic determinants of the health-related behaviors The purpose of this article is to introduce the IMB model and by review of some studies based on this model; suitability of the model for health education and promotion interventions to be discussed. Iranian and foreign studies conducted using this model reveal the model's effectiveness in various health education disciplines. Although the IMB model has restrictions and disadvantages as any other health education and promotion model, IMB model-based interventions' advantages show that it is an applied model for changing health behavior.

Keywords:

Information-Motivation-Behavioral skills (IMB) model , Health Education and Promotion , Effectiveness