From Nudge to MOVE: A practical framework for behaviour changeSeptember 26, 2022

Over the last decade, behavioural science has been a key source of innovation across the healthcare sector. Within public health, pharmaceuticals and consumer, brands and businesses are starting to apply behavioural science to a wide range of health-related challenges.

Despite this potential, many organisations face obstacles when setting out on their behavioural science journey. Some are daunted by the complexity of human behaviour and the technicalities of a scientific discipline. Others lose confidence when over-simplified examples taken from popular science books have little impact on their specific challenge.

Whilst it’s important to respect the complexity of human behaviour, effective behavioural solutions often rely on clear, actionable insight that can inspire creativity and support collaboration.

With these challenges and opportunities in mind, BCW WHY has developed MOVE: An evidence-based framework to guide the application of behaviour change science and technology for our clients.

MOVE helps manage complexity whilst avoiding over-simplification, supporting teams to design for behaviour change in a strategic and coordinated way. It does this by focusing on four key components of human behaviour:

Motivation, Opportunity, Values and Efficacy

Working with the theory behind MOVE, successful behaviour change occurs when an intervention:

• Builds Motivation: It’s something I want to do
• Increases Opportunity: My environment makes it possible/easy to do
• Aligns with Values: Doing it reflects who I am and what’s important to me
• Builds Efficacy: I have the skills and ability required to do it.

Building on existing evidence-based frameworks such as COM-B (Capability, Opportunity, Motivation) and B-MAT (Motivation, Ability, Trigger) MOVE incorporates a specific role for values as a driver of human behaviour. As ‘guiding principles in life’, values have huge potential as a catalyst for longer-term, more sustainable behaviour change.

The launch of MOVE is being supported by an ambitious programme of research to deepen our understanding of the ways in which our values drive behaviour and how we can use this insight to improve health and wellbeing through sustainable behaviour change.

In the next instalment of From Nudge to Move, we focus on the insights and inspiration that are already emerging from this research. Email [email protected] to sign up to receive this content directly into your inbox.

In the meantime, if you’re facing a challenge that would benefit from a behavioural science lens, please get in touch for a free 60-minute consultation with one of our experts. Simply email [email protected] with a brief overview and we’ll be in touch to book in your session.