Introduction
Behaviour change is one of the primary functions of government communications – helping people adopt healthier habits, stay safe and engage with public services. Getting it right can save lives, improve public services and deliver value for taxpayers.
What is behaviour change?
A behaviour change is an observable action – not a culture shift, attitude change or increased awareness. While these may support behaviour change, they are not the outcome itself.
Communication can tell people what to do and why, but it cannot overcome environmental barriers such as lack of money or time. Behavioural science helps focus communications on what can actually contribute to removing barriers.
Types of behaviour change
Behaviour change can take many forms. In your communications, you could be encouraging your audience to:
- Adopt new positive behaviours, such as taking up regular exercise or attending training courses
- Stop negative behaviours, such as drink driving or posting harmful content on social media
- Maintain or increase existing positive behaviours, such as paying tax on time or remaining opted into a workplace pension
- Reduce existing negative behaviours, such as drinking less alcohol or making fewer short car journeys
- Refrain from adopting new negative behaviours, such as breaching security regulations or becoming involved in knife crime
Learn more
Use these frameworks to apply a behavioural approach to your communications:
- Principles of behaviour change: A comprehensive guide to using behavioural science to design and implement effective campaigns, including practical tools and case studies.
- The Wall of Beliefs: A practical toolkit to help government communicators understand why audiences adopt false beliefs, manage behavioural risks, and deploy targeted, evidence-based counter-disinformation strategies.
- IN CASE framework: A structured approach for anticipating and managing unintended consequences in communications activities.
- A behavioural approach to strategic communications: A guide to designing audience-centred communications using behavioural science.
- A behavioural approach to crisis communications: An introduction to crisis communications from a behavioural perspective, particularly useful for those new to crisis work.
For more learning, explore the Learning Hub (opens in new tab) for courses in behaviour change and behavioural science.
Further guidance and support
If you need expert assistance applying behavioural science frameworks to your projects, the Government Communication Service Behavioural Science Team is available to help. The team provides specialist support to central government campaigns and offers tailored consultancy services across communications, policy and operations.
Their approach moves beyond simply applying generic literature solutions. Instead, they use robust behavioural frameworks to analyse complex problems and design bespoke, context-specific interventions.
The team support departments by:
- Deconstructing complex problems: Breaking challenges down into their constituent parts to map target behaviours and pinpoint how specific barriers affect different groups.
- Understanding the audience’s context: Exploring how complexity, stress, ambiguity or uncertainty drive seemingly “irrational” actions, recognising that most behaviour is a logical response to a person’s immediate environment and circumstances.
- Designing action-oriented solutions: Crafting communication strategies that systematically dismantle psychological and structural barriers, helping citizens make informed decisions and take action.
To find out how the team can support your communications work, contact behavioural-science@cabinetoffice.gov.uk.