Ongoing development of a typology of physical micro-environment, or choice architecture, interventions

Abstract

Background: We have previously published a provisional typology of physical micro-environment (or choice architecture) interventions to change health-related behaviour, derived from a large-scale scoping review of the empirical literature (http://bmcpublichealth.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1471-2458-13-1218). Such interventions include altering the size, availability or presentation of food, alcohol or tobacco products and related objects. The primary objective is to develop a new, more conceptually coherent typology that can be applied reliably, in order to improve our ability to describe and classify such interventions. Methods: In the first stage of planned development, the study team has produced a draft version of the typology, to be iterated over a series of formal exercises. The developing typology will then be subject to reliability and validity testing by a group of external behaviour change experts, involving the coding of intervention descriptions, to inform the production of a final version. Expected results: Production of a typology that is both more conceptually coherent and a more reliable means of describing this evidence base than what has been available previously. Current stage of work: A draft version of the typology has been developed. This will be presented along with data from reliability and validity testing exercises which will be completed by July 2016. Discussion: The development of our typology will provide a more valid and reliable way than currently exists for describing and classifying physical micro-environment interventions to change health-related behaviour. This and other related typologies can provide a foundation for building the evidence base for effective ways of changing behavior across populations.