5
Table 3. Behavior Change Wheel (BCW)
• Links interventions with targeted behaviors
• Non-linear, meaning that more than one behavioral system component, intervention
function, and policy category may affect change
• Incorporates contextual influences on behavior (called 'automatic functions') like
emotions and impulses, rather than reflective processes such as evaluations and plans
• Michie et al.
1
evaluated 19 existing behavior change frameworks for
comprehensiveness (i.e., applicability to any intervention), coherence, and link to a
behavioral model to create a 3-layered tool.
Components of the BCW:
1. COM-B (Capability, Opportunity, and Motivation to change Behavior)
2. Nine intervention functions that can be used to affect behavioral change
3. Seven policy categories that enable or support interventions to enact the desired
behavior change.
Settings that have applied the BCW:
• Community-based practice
• Healthcare
Healthy behaviors implemented with the BCW:
• Smoking cessation
3
• Obesity prevention
5
• Increased physical activity
2,4
IPC interventions implemented with the BCW:
• Hand hygiene adherence
6,7
• Antibiotic prescribing
8,9
