The Behaviour Change Wheel is a model that seeks to capture both the factors that affect behaviours, and the different types of interventions that can be used to change behaviours.
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The Behaviour Change Wheel: From behavioural diagnosis to intervention design
The Behaviour Change Wheel (BCW) was developed from 19 frameworks of behaviour change identified in a systematic literature review. It consists of three layers.
The hub of the wheel identifies the sources of the behaviour that could prove fruitful targets for intervention. It uses the COM-B ('capability', 'opportunity', 'motivation', and 'behaviour') model. This model recognises that behaviour is part of an interacting system involving all these components. Interventions need to change one or more of them in such a way as to put the system into a new configuration and minimise the risk of it reverting.
Surrounding the hub is a layer of nine intervention functions to choose from based on the particular COM-B analysis one has undertaken.
The outer layer, the rim of the wheel, identifies seven policy categories that can support the delivery of these intervention functions.
The BCW provides a systematic way of identifying relevant intervention functions and policy categories based on what is understood about the target behaviour. General intervention functions can be translated into specific techniques for changing behaviour – BCT Taxonomy Training.
The behaviour equation
The first part of this model is presented as the green inner core of a wheel. This is the model’s behavioural equation: B=COM. This says an individual’s behaviour (B) is a function of their capability (C), opportunity (O), and motivation (M).
In this model, capability relates to an individual’s underlying psychological and physical abilities. Opportunity relates to both their social and physical environments, and motivation relates to both their underlying automatic and reflective processes. Further supplementary work exists in relation to each of these factors, particularly motivation.
Intervention functions
The second part of this model is shown as a red ring around the core. This part of the model is comprised of nine intervention functions. Each intervention function has the ability to affect one or more of the underlying factors of behaviour (COM). These intervention functions are suitable for both small scale and individual behavioural changes, or can be applied across larger populations.
Each of the nine intervention functions identified in the model can be used to affect at least one of the underlying factors of behaviour.
- Education has the ability to increase an individual’s psychological and physical capability, as well as their reflective motivation.
- Persuasion, incentivisation, and coercion all have the ability to increase an individual’s automatic and reflective motivation (note, these are three functions that have been combined here).
- Training has the ability to increase an individual’s physical and psychological capability, their physical opportunity, and their automatic motivation.
- Restriction has the ability to modify an individual’s physical and social opportunities.
- Environmental restructuring has the ability to modify an individual’s physical and social opportunities, as well as their automatic motivation.
- Modelling has the ability to increase an individual’s automatic and reflective motivation, as well as their social opportunity.
- Enablement has the ability to increase physical and psychological capability, physical and social opportunity, and an individual’s automatic motivation.
Each of the nine intervention functions has a role to play when designing a behaviour change intervention. In addition to these broad functions is a set of 93 behaviour change tools that can be used to change behaviours. These tools are grouped into 16 categories which are show in this post. To learn more about them, you can download the “BCT taxonomy app” (Apple/Android).
Policy categories
The third and final part of the model is shown as the grey outer ring of the wheel. This section is comprised of seven categories of policy that could be used to enable interventions that affect behaviour. While these policy categories are perhaps designed with national policy in mind, they can be of significant use in supporting behaviour change at an organisational level. The policy categories within the behaviour change wheel each have the ability to create or support one or more of the intervention functions.
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