In one of my classes at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, we’re learning all about social theory and how that applies to the agricultural industry. Although it may seem grueling to endure a lecture at 8 a.m., the class has broadened my perspective on how others might perceive the dairy industry.
There are several different theories the class focuses on, including the elaboration likelihood model, attribution theory, cognitive dissonance, and the theory of planned behavior. Amongst all of these, the theory of planned behavior is one that I find most applicable to the dairy industry. This theory focuses on three factors — attitude, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control — which help explain someone’s intention to behave and, in turn, how they behave.
Attitude covers how people perceive their outcomes and what these outcomes are classified as; these are known as behavioral beliefs and outcome evaluations, respectively. With a consumer who’s deciding whether or not to drink a glass of milk, a behavioral belief of theirs might be what they understand the outcome of drinking the milk to be. This is particularly influential toward people who choose to drink milk alternatives or lactose-free options because they might believe the outcome of consuming milk is not good for them. This directly works with the concept of outcome evaluations because those cover the consumer’s understanding of whether the behavior is good or bad.
Subjective norms cover the outside influences that accompany personal decision making, with concepts of normative beliefs and motivation to comply. With the same behavior of drinking milk, normative beliefs cover what others might think if someone was to perform that action. Motivation to comply is sourced in an individual’s personal motives to perform the action, and in this case, the action would be to drink milk. If someone feels compelled to drink milk due to outside influence, their subjective norms might be impacted.
With someone’s perceived behavioral control, we’re focused on understanding someone’s personal feelings and motivations toward an action. The factors of perceived power and control beliefs are ones that contribute to perceived behavioral control. An individual's power over a situation can be seen as the physical abilities they have to complete the task. With drinking milk, this can be whether or not there is milk accessible to this person or if they’re unable to purchase it. On the flipside, control beliefs can be considered as someone’s internal thoughts or a “pep talk”; essentially, it is whether or not they feel capable of completing an action. This can be shown in someone’s internal debate about drinking milk as they weigh those options to themselves.
The theory of planned behavior can be used in a variety of facets, whether it’s marketing dairy products or writing articles for consumers. The most impactful reason that I notice is understanding the consumer’s point of view.
As people who are involved in the dairy industry, it’s important to understand why people make the choices that they do so we can be better equipped to fight misconceptions. In between the moments that I doze off into a world where I’m asleep, social theory poses an enlightening version of the consumer’s view of agriculture.
Morgan Oliveira was the 2024 Hoard’s Dairyman editorial intern. She grew up working on her family’s dairy farm near Hilmar, Calif. As a student at Cal Poly University, Oliveira is majoring in agriculture communications.
