AHealth Behavior Change Theory
1You will start the process of this paper by selecting a health behavior change theory to focus on for your project.  
2Select between the theories we have covered in class (i.e., ecological model, health belief model, transtheoretical model, and theory of planned behavior).
3You will write between 150-300 words describing which theory you have chosen and why you have selected it. (Note: This assignment comes early in the semester, I don’t expect you to be an expert – if you write that you have chosen a theory because we have already covered it – that is fine at this point.)
4This part of the assignment will be worth 30 points and is due on March 29th at 11:59 PM.   
B. Environmental Toxin
1You will next choose an environmental toxin that impacts a specific population that you want to explore for your project.
2Select an environmental toxin that impacts a population, a list below can help you get started in thinking, you can use any of those listed or come up with your own example:
aPolychlorinated biphenyls 
bBotulinum toxin 
cPhthalates
dOrganochlorines
eCryptosporidium
fDioxins
gPlease note: if you want to do a chemical not on this list, you MUST ask Dr. B. YOU CANNOT USE LEAD, TOBACCO (OR ANYTHING CONNECTED TO SMOKING)!
3You will write between 150-300 words describing which environmental toxin and population you will explore in this project.
aPlease, specify your environmental toxin – do not just list a toxin and move on. You will need to have at least a few sentences describing what the toxin is and how it impacts human health.
bDo not just say a population like low-income communities, you need to describe a specific population (e.g., race, age, gender, sociogeographic location, and/or income level).
cRemember that you will need to describe how your health behavior change theory will help people avoid or minimize contact with this toxin.
B. Populations
1Now that you have decided on your theory and toxin you need to define your populations. Public Health as you well know is concerned with populations. We have discussed populations every week this semester in big and small ways through our population perspectives discussions.
aWhy is the population you are focusing on in this project important?
aHint: Name both vulnerable population & population in control of behavior!
bWhy do they experience increased exposure to the toxin?
iDo they control their own exposure?
1If not who does – what is this population? Do they understand that they are influencing another population’s exposure to the toxin?
2Word count 250-500 words.
3This part of the assignment will be worth 50 points and is due on April 5th at 11:59 PM.
C. Theory + Toxin + Population
aNow that you have finished both parts A and B; please go back and review your work. Review your notes from this semester and decide if you need to alter your health behavior change theory, toxin, or population.
bConsider if your initial health behavior change theory matches the environmental toxins you are choosing to explore. Think about:
iWhat constructs your population will likely need to address to alter behavior to limit exposure to a toxin? (e.g., if exposure is at work but this is the only job they can get – can we reasonably expect that they can change their exposure?)
ii Why is this the best health behavior change theory to use for your population, and limiting the environmental toxin you have chosen?
iiiDid you think about other theories? Briefly describe why you have ruled those out.
1Now that you have a solid body of what you are studying and how you will encourage limiting exposure to environmental toxins it is time to add in evidence. This section should provide evidence of:
aHow the environmental toxin impacts human health?
bWhat population is overwhelmingly impacted by this environmental toxin?
cHow the health behavior change theory has changed limiting exposure to this environmental toxin previously or how it has changed a similar health behavior?
iFor example: If I am trying increase testing of carbon monoxide detectors in the home I might look up health behavior change theories connected to helping people utilize PPE on work sites. Though these two behaviors might seem very far removed the principle of behavior for safety is the same.
iiIf you are stuck on this step please, ask for help it can be tricky to understand connections in the literature or find some similar behavior when you are first starting to understand health behavior.
2Make sure to address how your health behavior, environmental toxin, and population will work together in this project.
3All sources must be cited using APA.
4Word count 1,450-1,600 words.
5This part of the assignment will be worth 70 points and is due on April 19th at 11:59 PM.
D. Conclusions and Introduction
1Now that you have solid Body, and Evidence sections it is time to draw conclusions and introduce the paper.
2The introduction section should be a brief overview of what you intend to show throughout your paper. This should be easier to write now that you have the body and evidence sections completed.
3The conclusion section should recap what you have shown throughout your project – how does your project impact overall exposure to environmental toxin for your population.
aRemember to tie-up loose ends – perhaps you did not find evidence to back up use of limiting exposure to your specific environmental toxin by your specific health behavior change theory – why does the research you found work to support your conclusions?
bWhat other research might be beneficial in the future to draw even stronger conclusions?
cPerhaps you did find research that fully supported your conclusions but the sample size was small, the geographic location was not the same, the race or sex were not the same, or in some other way it wasn’t a perfect match – what other research would be beneficial in these areas to draw stronger conclusions.
4Word count 500-800 words.
5This part of the assignment will be worth 30 points and is due on April 26th at 11:59 PM.
AFinal Paper
1Go back to each section of your paper and review the overall edits and the line edits provided to you.
aMake any suggested changes that you agree will make your paper stronger.
bReformat your sections to follow order of paper below:
iIntroduction
iiHealth Behavior Change Theory
iiiEnvironmental Toxin
ivPopulation
vHealth Behavior Change Theory used with Environmental Toxin and impact on specific population that controls exposure to toxin
viConclusions
viiReferences
viiiAppendices (This includes all worksheets and optional appendices listed below)
cEnsure your paper is between 1,800-2,800 words. This will likely mean you need to add content to your paper to get it to the correct word count. There will be several suggestions in the edits of the paper to help you get to that word count.
AInstructions for Writing and Submitting the Assignment
1You will need to go beyond simple description. 
2Remember, you need to cite all sources using APA formatting.
aThere are citation manager programs that can aid with this. However, be careful because they often make mistakes so you will need to check that they are done correctly.
3Because this assignment will be completed in parts throughout the semester with feedback for each part, I expect your paper to have high quality and be free from common grammar errors.
4The total word count for this assignment is:
a1,800-2,800 words