The application of theory to designing and evaluating interventions to change behaviour

Authors

  • S. Michie
  • M. Johnston
  • A. Rothman
  • M. Kelly
  • M. de Bruin
  • R. Carey
  • L. Connell

Abstract

Background: Despite the importance of using theory to inform the development and evaluation of behaviour change interventions, the explicit links between behaviour change content and theory are not fully understood. To (i) advance the application of theory to intervention development and evaluation, (ii) maximise the theoretical understanding of empirical evaluations, and (iii) develop methods for testing and refining theory, we require an explicit methodology for linking behaviour change techniques (BCTs) to their mechanisms of action. Methods: A corpus of 900+ published reports of behaviour change interventions were identified as likely to report links from BCT to theoretical mechanisms of action. Interventions were coded for theory use, including which (if any) theory guided the intervention development and, drawing on the Theory Coding Scheme, whether BCTs were hypothesised to link to individual theory-relevant constructs. Findings: No link between the intervention content (i.e. BCTs) and a theoretical construct was made in 400+ of the papers. Of the 400+ reporting a link, approximately 10% did not mention any overarching theoretical basis for the intervention. Discussion: These results are consistent with findings from other reviews indicating that a majority of reports of behaviour change interventions have not explicitly linked behaviour change techniques to theoretical constructs or mechanisms of action. To advance the science of behaviour change, we need to develop agreed methods for understanding theoretical processes of change underlying effective behaviour change interventions.

Published

2016-12-31

Issue

Section

Symposia