Behaviour Change Strategies
Behaviour Change Strategies

BEHAVIOUR
CHANGE
CARDS

15 strategies. 45 techniques. 4 science domains. A practitioner's toolkit for designing interventions that change how people think, feel, and act.

19 cards|45 techniques|4 domains
About the Toolkit

DESIGN FOR
HUMAN BEHAVIOUR

This deck distills decades of behavioural science research into 15 actionable strategies, each backed by three numbered techniques drawn from psychology, neuroscience, and behavioural economics. Whether you're designing products, services, policies, or experiences, these cards give you a structured way to apply evidence-based behaviour change principles.

The strategies are organized around four science domains - Psychological Needs, Biases & Heuristics, Habit Science, and Incentive Science - forming a complete map of the forces that shape human decision-making.

15

Strategies

Evidence-based approaches

45

Techniques

Numbered interventions

4

Domains

Science foundations

CC

Source

Open access license

Science Domains

EXPLORE THE FOUR DOMAINS

Psychological Needs

PSYCHOLOGICAL NEEDS

3 strategies - 9 techniques

Tap into core human needs for meaning, autonomy, and loss aversion. When interventions align with what people fundamentally want, behaviour change becomes intrinsic.

make it meaningfulmake it yoursmake it aversive
Biases & Heuristics

BIASES & HEURISTICS

3 strategies - 9 techniques

Work with cognitive shortcuts rather than against them. Use social proof, framing effects, and perceptual biases to make the desired choice feel natural and attractive.

make it socialmake it empoweringmake it attractive
Habit Science

HABIT SCIENCE

6 strategies - 18 techniques

Design environments where the desired behaviour becomes the path of least resistance. Make actions easy, obvious, timely, and contextually triggered.

make it immersivemake it goal-orientedmake it scarcemake it obviousmake it easymake it timely
Incentive Science

INCENTIVE SCIENCE

3 strategies - 9 techniques

Design compelling incentives that go beyond carrot-and-stick. Leverage tangible rewards, surprise, and curiosity gaps to create genuine motivation.

make it tangiblemake it unexpectedmake it intriguing
How to Use

DESIGN YOUR INTERVENTION

01

Define the Behaviour

Start by clearly articulating the specific behaviour you want to encourage, discourage, or change. Be precise - "exercise more" is vague; "walk 10,000 steps daily" is actionable.

02

Explore Strategies

Browse the four science domains and identify which strategies align with your behavioural challenge. Each strategy card contains a design prompt to help you think through the application.

03

Apply Techniques

Flip each strategy card to reveal three numbered techniques. Select and combine techniques across strategies to design a multi-layered intervention that addresses behaviour from multiple angles.