Helping someone else make a behaviour change

When helping someone using COM-B, we break down the targeted behaviour. This helps us develop interventions to target the desired behaviour.

For example, if you're a professional looking to support someone in a behaviour change, you may have to consider a behavioural analysis. The process of breaking down a behaviour by using behavioural analysis can be complex.

If you're planning on using this technique to help develop an intervention you should seek the support of a behaviour change specialist. The following is a brief overview of the process.

Being able to break down the behaviour into these parts allows you to be very specific in where support is needed and how you might best address it to achieve the outcome you want.

How to break down behaviours

Capability

Capability refers to whether we have the knowledge, skills and abilities needed to engage in a particular behaviour. You can break it down further into:

• Psychological capability: our knowledge or psychological strength, skills or stamina
• Physical capability: our physical strength, skill or stamina

Opportunity

In this model, opportunity refers to the external factors which make the execution of a particular behaviour possible. You can break it down further into:

• Physical opportunity: opportunities provided by the environment, such as time, location and resource
• Social opportunity: opportunities as a result of social factors, such as cultural norms and social cues

Motivation

Motivation refers to the internal processes which influence our decision making and behaviours. You can break it down further into:

• Reflective motivation: processes such as making plans and evaluating things that have happened
• Automatic motivation: automatic processes, such as our desires, impulses and inhibitions

Once you break down the behaviour into these parts you'll be able to see what barriers you need to address. You can then develop the appropriate intervention to encourage the desired behaviour.