Apply the Theory of Planned Behavior to predict behavioral intentions from attitudes, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control, and identify intervention leverage points.
SkillScore74Maintained
Automatic
◆Research pack
Last verified 8/28/2026
What it changes
Passed 17 of 23 test cases with the skill, and 9 of 23 without it.
Without skill39%
With skill74%
Checks it passed that the model alone missed
The document starts with the main header ## TPB Analysis:.
The analysis rates the Intention-Behavior Gap Risk as High.
The response includes the subheader ### Predictor Assessment.
and 9 more in the full report
9 fixed8 passed either way5 still failing1 broke
Pass-rate lift
+35 pp
Tokens
-2%
Agent turns
0%
Response time
-31%
Model gemini-3.6-flashMeasured 8/28/2026v117 of 23 cases passed with skill
Tokens, turns and time describe resource use, not a dollar price.
See it in action
One of 9 test cases the skill fixed. Same model, same prompt, with and without the skill.
1 of 9
Prompt
A hospital wants nurses to perform bedside hand hygiene before touching patients during shift hours. A baseline survey shows high positive attitudes, strong subjective norms from supervisors, but extremely low perceived control due to missing hand sanitizer dispensers near beds. Generate a TPB analysis report for this situation.
What was checked, without and with the skill
Checked
Without skill
With skill
The primary recommended intervention lever focuses on perceived behavioral control or barrier removal.
Passed
Passed
The response assigns a negative (-) score indicator to the Perceived Behavioral Control predictor.
Missed
Passed
case-05 · gemini-3.6-flash · 8/28/2026 · answers are capped and redacted
What's inside
The instructions your model reads when the skill loads.
SKILL.md105 linessingle file
Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB)
Overview
The Theory of Planned Behavior (Ajzen, 1991) extends the Theory of Reasoned Action by adding perceived behavioral control as a predictor of both intention and behavior. Behavioral intention is determined by three factors: attitude toward the behavior, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control. Intention is the proximal predictor of behavior, moderated by actual control.
When to Use
Predicting whether a target population will adopt a new behavior (health, technology, policy)
Diagnosing the intention-behavior gap — why people intend to act but do not follow through
Designing persuasion or behavior change interventions by targeting the weakest predictor
Evaluating campaign effectiveness on attitude, norm, and control dimensions
When NOT to Use
For habitual or automatic behaviors where intention plays a minimal role
When behavior is primarily driven by unconscious or emotional processes (use dual-process models)
For behaviors under complete external control (no volitional component)
Assumptions
IRON LAW: Intention predicts behavior ONLY when perceived
behavioral control is high — without actual control, intention
alone is insufficient. The intention-behavior gap widens as
volitional control decreases.
Key assumptions:
People make reasoned (though not necessarily rational) decisions based on available information
Behavioral beliefs, normative beliefs, and control beliefs are the informational foundations
The relative weight of attitude, norms, and PBC varies across behaviors and populations
Methodology
Step 1 — Specify the Target Behavior
Define the behavior precisely using the TACT framework:
Apply Hegelian dialectics (thesis-antithesis-synthesis) to analyze contradictions and generate higher-order understanding. Use this skill when the user needs to resolve opposing viewpoints, find creative synthesis between conflicting positions, or move past binary thinking — even if they say 'both sides have valid points', 'how do we reconcile these views', or 'is there a third option'.