COVID-19: Golden rules for behaviour change

COVID-19 has triggered a worldwide experiment in human behaviour like none other before, since the only real way to combat the spread of the virus is by influencing how we interact with each other and the world around us.

In our report COVID-19: Golden rules for behaviour change, we outline how behavioural science is a useful tool for thinking about how we might encourage and support people in doing what they know is right, even when it is hard. We have also created four “golden rules” that can help us sustain over time the behaviour changes we need to make to protect ourselves, our families, and our communities:

• Rule #1: Understand the context, since context influences our mindset
• Rule #2: Messengers matter; it’s a matter of trust
• Rule #3: People look to others for clues about what to do
• Rule #4: People are drawn to things that grab their attention

Read about these four rules in our report to learn about how behavioural change can help us recover in a world contending with the repercussions of COVID-19.