The Behaviour Change Wheel

Knowledge or psychological skills, strength or stamina to engage in the necessary mental processes

Understanding the impact of CO2 on the environment

Physical skill, strength or stamina

Having the skill to take a blood sample

Opportunity afforded by interpersonal influences, social cues and cultural norms that influence the way that we think about things, e.g. the words and concepts that make up our language

Being able to smoke in the house of someone who smokes but not in the middle of a boardroom meeting

Opportunity afforded by the environment involving time, resources, locations, cues, physical 'affordance'

Being able to go running because one owns appropriate shoes

Reflective processes involving plans (selfconscious intentions) and evaluations (beliefs about what is good and bad)

Intending to stop smoking

Automatic processes involving emotional reactions, desires (wants and needs), impulses, inhibitions, drive states and reflex responses

Feeling anticipated pleasure at the prospect of eating a piece of chocolate cake

Increasing knowledge or understanding.

Providing information to promote healthy eating.

Using communication to induce positive or negative feelings or stimulate action.

Using imagery to motivate increases in physical activity.

Creating an expectation of reward.

Using prize draws to induce attempts to stop smoking.

Creating an expectation of punishment or cost.

Raising the financial cost to reduce excessive alcohol consumption.

Imparting skills.

Advanced driver training to increase safe driving.

Increasing means/reducing barriers to increase capability (beyond education and training) or opportunity (beyond environmental restructuring).

Behavioural support for smoking cessation, medication for cognitive deficits, surgery to reduce obesity, prostheses to promote physical activity.

Providing an example for people to aspire to or imitate.

Using TV drama scenes involving safe-sex practices to increase condom use.

Changing the physical or social context.

Providing on-screen prompts for GPs to ask about smoking behaviour.

Using rules to reduce the opportunity to engage in the target behaviour (or to increase the target behaviour by reducing the opportunity to engage in competing behaviours).

Prohibiting sales of solvents to people under 18 to reduce use for intoxication.

Creating documents that recommend or mandate practice. This includes all changes to service provision.

Producing and disseminating treatment protocols.

Designing and/or controlling the physical or social environment.

Using town planning.

Using print, electronic, telephonic or broadcast media.

Conducting mass media campaigns.

Making or changing laws.

Prohibiting sale or use.

Delivering a service.

Establishing support services in workplaces, communities etc.

Establishing rules or principles of behaviour or practice.

Establishing voluntary agreements on advertising.

Using the tax system to reduce or increase the financial cost.

Increasing duty or increasing anti-smuggling activities.