Unlocking the power of behavioural science to ignite activism and purpose. Words by Crawford Hollingworth, Founder at The Behavioural Architects
Even though many of us have an urge to act on these issues, this often doesn’t materialise, known in behavioural science as the ‘intention-behaviour gap’. We know from behavioural science that the ‘huge-ness’ of these challenges mean people feel powerless and unable to affect real change. We can also suffer from the belief that one individual cannot make a difference, building a further sense of paralysis…But the truth is more optimistic! Research by Erica Chenoweth at Harvard University suggests that it only takes around 3.5% of the population to engage with activism around a specific challenge to instigate political change.
In this article we will explore: 1. How behavioural science can: a. Help people engage with complex issues b. Reduce the intention-behaviour gap that holds us back
2. How brands can connect to these two behavioural strategies by helping consumers engage in activism and purpose
The global challenges we are facing can appear so daunting and widespread that it seems impossible that one individual could do anything to help. The problem is not that people don’t want to act, it’s that they don’t know how to - and they’re not convinced that anything they do will have an impact. Behavioural science can go a long way towards bringing these overwhelming issues back to earth and provide people with the tools to convert energy into purpose.
Chunking is a great tool to help people work towards a goal or complete a task. Breaking something down into sections - or chunks - helps us stay motivated by keeping us focused on smaller ‘sub-goals’ that seem more manageable and less distant. Instead of focusing on the giant challenge of social inequality for example, focusing on little things that can be done immediately - or in the near future - helps get people engaged. These could range from a one-off donation to charity, writing to your local MP as a call for action, or signing up to volunteer at a food bank.
The language we use to talk about certain challenges can be extremely important in encouraging activism and building behavioural energy. Behavioural science shows how the way something is described, or ‘framed’, can have a large impact on the way a message is perceived. A great example of this is the recent reframing of global warming to the Climate Crisis or Climate Emergency. Before this, global warming or climate change doesn’t really sound that bad, and it definitely doesn’t sound like something that requires urgent action. On a similar line the framing used by Extinction Rebellion is full of behavioural energy and action.
This was also seen with the change in language from ‘immigrants’ to ‘refugees’ in the wake of the tragic image of a drowned Syrian boy, Aylan Kurdi, in the global news in 2015. This reframe encouraged empathy and support rather than fear and distrust. Immediately after the image was shown globally, donations to Syrian refugee charities surged to 55 times higher than donations previously. Donations also rose in the long term as a result of the permanent reframe of the issue in the collective consciousness of society. Change the frame, change the meaning, build connection.
When it comes to bigger changes in behaviour - changing how you travel or becoming vegan or flexitarian - many people claim to want to act. But many of us find it much easier to ‘talk the talk’ vs ‘walk the walk’; in behavioural science, this is a concept called the intention-behaviour gap.
Throughout the day, many concerns and stimuli compete for our focus and attention, and as a result we are likely to forget things if we are not prompted at the point of action. A great example of this is food donation baskets at supermarkets. Although we may intend to donate groceries to food banks, many people find it hard to remember to pick up extra items whilst shopping. By the time you walk past the donation baskets at the end of the checkout, you’ve already paid and it’s too late. Additionally, it may be too effortful to overcome our daily habits to do something different - if something isn’t easy to do, we just won’t do it.
Behavioural science can be very useful in helping people remember to act on their intentions. To ease the cognitive burden, overcome habitual behaviours, and address forgetfulness, we can make use of action planning and implementation intentions: when we specify when, where and how we are going to achieve a goal. Indeed, these techniques have been found to be highly effective in helping people achieve their goals.
For example, implementation intentions have been shown to be incredibly powerful in political activism. When trying to increase voter turnout in the US, voters who were encouraged to make a plan for how and when to vote were 9.1% more likely to vote than similar individuals who didn’t make a plan. So, if you want to act, make a plan!
Finally, one of the most effective tools in behaviour science to encourage action is to change the default choice, something which often w tmore than doubles or even triples participation rates. In the clothing world, whilst people are beginning to understand the vast carbon footprint of fast fashion, behaviour change is slow. To help drive this change, initiatives that alter the default option can help. For example, rather than local sporting events handing out t-shirts to participants as the default (participants often aren’t given the choice to opt-out of receiving one), initiatives such as Trees no Tees encourage offering participants to plant a tree instead of receiving a ‘tee’! In offering participants a choice – and a greener option – rather than receiving a t-shirt by default, it will be easier for some behavioural action to occur.
People often demonstrate their support for a campaign or cause by purchasing goods that align with their values. For example, the increase in the number of people opting for a vegetarian, vegan or flexitarian diet reflects growing concern about the climate crisis and the damage meat and dairy production is doing to the environment.
Initially, this form of ‘grassroots activism’ tended to focus on declining to purchase certain products. However, we are increasingly seeing consumers actively purchasing products that support the things they care about, supported by brands that provide a vehicle for doing so. For example, when you purchase clothing from Everlane’s “100% Human” range (right), a portion of the proceeds goes to a civil rights organisation and buying a LifeStraw for your next camping trip gives a child in a developing country safe water to drink for one school year. Brands can also help consumers by making salient their adherence to ethical consumption, like providing point of sale reminders such as ‘no parabens’ when purchasing beauty or hygiene products. Airline companies could also promote carbon offsetting by providing links to carbon offset partners at point of sale. Skyscanner already offers something similar; when you search for flights on their website, they highlight the lower carbon flight options from aircraft that fly more efficiently.
It’s often easy to feel overwhelmed by the daunting issues and emergencies we face in today’s world and the behavioural changes we all need to make. But step back a little, arm yourself with some simple tried-and-tested tools from behavioural science and what felt impossible suddenly feels like it might just be achievable. Change a frame and change engagement, eat that proverbial elephant one chunk at a time and make your action plan to bridge that gap.
Looking at this from a company or brand perspective what is clear is that there is energy or intent for change amongst consumers to tackle these big issues. So ask yourselves how can we help people bridge the intention-behaviour gap? Let’s leverage behavioural science to simplify actions and reduce the friction, and we just might change those dystopian future visions we started this article with…
