1. Changing our behaviour by changing ourselves
Robert West
Susan Michie

2. The ‘rider’ and the ‘horse’
Within us all we have a ‘rider’ and a ‘horse’. To help us achieve our goals we need to strengthen our ‘rider’ and tame or train our ‘horse’
The ‘rider’:
Self-conscious plans and beliefs about what is good and bad
The ‘horse’:
Wants, needs and instinctive or habitual impulses

3. The ‘rider’ and the ‘horse’
Self-conscious plans and beliefs about what is good and bad
The ‘horse’:
Wants, needs and instinctive or habitual impulses
The PRIME Model of human motivation

4. How to stop doing things that are harmful
Strengthen the ‘rider’
Tame the ‘horse’

5. How to stop doing things that are harmful
Strengthen the ‘rider:’
set clear realistic goals
monitor & act accordingly
strengthen the new identity
strengthen/extend reasons for restraint
conserve & build mental energy
Tame the ‘horse’:
avoid triggers & create barriers
reduce the harmful desires/urges
re-channel the harmful desires/urges
extinguish the harmful habits
train competing habits
The PRIME Model of human motivation

6. How to do things that are beneficial
Strengthen the ‘rider’
Train the ‘horse’

7. How to do things that are beneficial
Strengthen the ‘rider:’
set clear realistic goals
monitor & act accordingly
strengthen the new identity
strengthen/extend reasons for action
conserve & build mental energy
Train the ‘horse’:
seek/create triggers & remove barriers
strengthen new desires/urges
channel existing desires/urges
extinguish competing habits
train new habits
The PRIME Model of human motivation

8. Applications Smoking cessation Reducing excessive alcohol use
medicines (varenicline, NRT, cytisine)
behavioural support (face to face, digital, book)
brief physician advice
population level interventions (smoke-free, age of sale, tax increases, reductions in illicit supply)
Reducing excessive alcohol use
brief interventions

9. How to stop doing things that are harmful
Strengthen the ‘rider:’
set clear realistic goals
monitor & act accordingly
strengthen the new identity
strengthen/extend reasons for restraint
conserve & build mental energy
Tame the ‘horse’:
avoid triggers & create barriers
reduce the harmful desires/urges
re-channel the harmful desires/urges
extinguish the harmful habits
train competing habits
The PRIME Model of human motivation