National Academies of Sciences releases guide on molding behaviors for COVID-19

Putting ideas out there so everyone knows them is very different, in practice, from actually getting people to do what you want, and The National Academies recently looked at some of the ways social science can get people to follow the recommendations of the rest of the sciences.

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine’s Societal Experts Action Network (SEAN) recently published a guide on behavior change and how to incorporate proven methods into encouraging people to follow recommendations related to preventing the spread of COVID-19, according to a press release from The National Academies.

The first suggestion is to remove as many speed bumps as possible between people and a desired behavior, such as by placing hand sanitizer at entryways, according to the release. Another is the use of visual indicators to help people recognize the 6-foot recommended distance.

The guide also recommends clear instructions that are easy to understand, avoiding things such as complex descriptions of when masks are recommended, according to the release.

“A sign that says ‘masks required’ is much easier to understand and actually follow through with,” Wendy Wood, a provost professor of psychology and business at the University of Southern California, and one of the authors of the guide, was quoted as saying in the release.

Behaviors are also more easily adopted if they are rewarding or fun, such as encouraging personal expression with logos and messages printed on masks, according to the release. Similarly, tying masks to an existing habit, such as by placing them by the front door next to keys, can encourage wearing them.

Yet, in communicating desired behaviors, the guide also cautions against overemphasizing how commonplace undesirable actions are, according to the release.

“By pointing too much to the frequency of socially undesirable behaviors,” such as crowding in bars or not wearing masks, “we may promote the idea that they are more frequent than they actually are,” Dominique Brossard, professor and chair in the department of life sciences communication at the University of Wisconsin, who also helped develop the SEAN guidance, was quoted as saying in the release.