Selecting Behaviors Calculating Weights BEHAVIOR – Create a list of 3 end-state, non-divisible behaviors that are not strategies. IMPACT - Survey individuals who have expertise regarding Fair Trade use and ask them to rate each behavior on a five-point scale of 0 to 4, where “0” equals “no impact” and “4” equals “significant impact.” PROBABILITY - Survey your target audience. Ask them to rate the probability that they would engage in a variety of behaviors. Use the same scale as “impact.” Provide context for the questions (place, method, time, reason). PENETRATION - Direct observations to determine the percentage of a target audience that has adopted behavior (past studies, observational studies). WEIGHT – Multiply the values that you obtained for impact, probability and penetration, Before you do you, invert the penetration values.

CBSM List Barriers to behavior List Benefits of behavior Developing Strategies List Barriers to behavior List Benefits of behavior We want to reduce barriers and increase benefits for the behavior to be encouraged, while doing the reverse for the opposing behavior. Too frequently, environmental program planners focus solely on the behavior they wish to encourage without giving adequate thought to the opposing behavior. By also addressing the behavior to be discouraged, we can make the desired action more attractive in contrast. Two examples will clarify the importance of this two-pronged approach.

Choose Your Tools BARRIERS TOOLS Lack of Motivation Commitment Norms Incentives Forget to Act Prompts Lack of Social Pressure Norms Lack of Knowledge Communication Social Diffusion Structural Barriers Convenience

Get a Commitment Emphasize written over verbal commitments Ask for public commitments Seek group commitments Actively involve the person Consider cost-effective ways to obtain commitments Use existing points of contact to obtain commitments Help people to view themselves as environmentally concerned Don’t use coercion (commitments must be freely volunteered) Combine commitment with other behavior change techniques

Social Norms Make the norm noticeable. Present the norm at the time the targeted behavior is to occur. For example, upon entering the Student Center, students could be greeted by a prominent display that indicates the percentage of students who purposely select products that are Fair Trade. Use norms to encourage people to engage in positive behaviors (rather than only avoiding non-Fair Trade products). Be careful using descriptive norms when an undesirable behavior is common. Combine descriptive information with praise (injunctive norm) when someone is performing the sustainable behavior better than average.

Social Diffusion Ensure that the behavior you are promoting is visible. Gain commitments from early adopters to speak to others about the behavior. Carefully identify who to target.

Using Prompts Make the prompt noticeable. The prompt should be self-explanatory. Through graphics and/or text the prompt should explain simply what the person is to do. The prompt should be presented as close in time and space as possible to the targeted behavior (e.g., place a prompt to purchase a Fair Trade product directly below the product). Use prompts to encourage people to engage in positive behaviors rather than to avoid harmful actions.

Communication Keep message is vivid, personal and concrete. Uncover barriers and benefits, explore behaviors. Have your message delivered by an individual (or organization) who has credibility with the audience you are trying to reach. Frame your message to indicate what the individual is losing by not acting. Use a one-sided or two-sided message. Make your communication clear and specific. Make it easy for people to remember what to do, and how and when to do it. Integrate personal or community goals into the delivery of your program. Enhance knowledge by modeling behaviors. Enhance social diffusion by increasing the likelihood that people will discuss their new activity with others. Use personal contact to deliver your message. Provide feedback at individual and community levels about the impact of sustainable behaviors.

Incentives Consider the Size of the Incentive. Incentives need to be large enough to be taken seriously. Closely Pair the Incentive and the Behavior. Make the Incentive Visible. Use Incentives to Reward Positive Behavior. Be Cautious about Removing Incentives.

Convenience Identify barriers Remove them

March 5 - Pilot Test Strategy In the pilot, test the effectiveness of the strategy with a limited number of people. You want to know, before committing to using the strategy throughout a community, that it will work effectively. If the pilot is successful, you can be much more confident of success when you broadly implement the strategy. If the pilot is unsuccessful, then you need to make further revisions, and pilot again before broad-scale implementation and evaluation.