The road to hell is paved with good intentions: The role of implicit processes in understanding the intention-behaviour gap and predicting health behaviours

Despite nearly 50% of Australian adults trying to lose weight (Dieticians Association of Australia, 2017), two thirds were overweight or obese (AIHW, 2020) a clear example of the “intention-behaviour gap”. This thesis sought to advance understanding of this gap by focusing on circumstances under which chocolate consumption may be predicted by unconscious, impulsive processes in place of conscious intentions according to the Reflective-Impulsive Model of Health Behaviour (RIM-H) (Hofmann, Friese, &Wiers, 2008). Predominantly, predictions according to the RIM-H were not supported. Reasons for this were explored, including issues with measurement of unconscious processes, another focus area of this thesis. Suggestions for further research to progress this area were made.