Negative beliefs as a moderator of the intention-behavior relationship: Decisions to use performance-enhancing substances

The theory of reasoned action framework was used to examine performance-enhancing substance use among a sample of college athletes in a prospective longitudinal design. Results indicate that attitudes and subjective norms predicted intention to use the substances, and these intentions predicted actual substance use 6 weeks later. A statistically significant interaction emerged between negative beliefs and intentions predicting behavior such that as negative beliefs grew increasingly negative, the intention-behavior relationship became stronger. Practical and theoretical implications of the influence of negative information on the intention-behavior relationship are discussed.