A practical guide to mapping behaviour change objectives for health promotion interventions

Abstract

Intervention Mapping (IM) is a theory- and evidence-based framework allowing to develop, implement, and evaluate an intervention in public health. The current paper presents a practical step-by-step guide of the second step of Intervention Mapping, which translates the needs assessment findings into specific objectives aiming at changing health behaviours and/or environmental conditions. This includes: (1) Stating the programme outcomes; (2) Listing the target behaviors and performance objectives; (3) Selecting the sub-determinants; and (4) Producing an overview of intervention targets: the matrix of change objectives. We provide practical guidelines for each of these tasks. In addition, intervention developers may benefit from the listed open tools that may be used in each stage to address the identified needs and achieve meaningful health outcomes.