Control Theory
As humans, we all love to control things within our environment to help us adapt better and how we feel about a certain domain. Control theory is used in design to make it effective and efficient as possible. Behavioral, decisional, and cognitive control are the three ways individuals control their surroundings.
BEHAVIORAL CONTROL
Behavioral control is the ability to change the environment around someone to make it more suitable. For example, when someone does not want to be socially interactive, they could put earphones in and isolate themselves. By blocking outside noise, the feeling of being alone is enhanced and others are less likely to disturb that person.
DECISIONAL CONTROL
The way people choose to respond or react to their environment is decisional control. It's officially fall and the temperature is dropping. The choice to dress warm for colder mornings or slightly lighter for warmer evening is decision based on the weather. People are able to choose how to adjust to their environment to make them feel more comfortable.
COGNITIVE CONTROL
Cognitive control is the way humans view their surroundings. When traveling, people can choose to reserve a window seat. While flying, one can simply look out the window changing their perception. Reading a book or simply watching a movie instantly takes a persons attention away from their surrounding and zones it into something else.
REFERENCES
Lewis, L. (2017, October 19). Lecture 1:Environment and Behavior Lecture.
Lynn, the way you stated the three control theories as being "the three ways individuals control their surroundings" better defines what control theory is in an easier to understand way. I enjoy your example of decisional control and how it relates to the current weather.
ReplyDeleteVery good explanation of the theories. How about you cite someone else in the future? I'm not the first that said it.
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