Six factors that influence behavior change

Editor's Notes

1. Source 1: Personal MotivationWhen the Guinea worm is exiting a victim’s body, the pain is absolutely excruciating. Since victims can’t merely yank the worm out of their arm or leg without the worm breaking and causing a horrific infection, they’re forced to wind the parasite around a stick and slowly edge it out over a couple of weeks—or even a couple of months. There’s only one source of relief during this prolonged ordeal, and that’s for victims to soak their painful sores in water. That means that individuals are personally motivated to do exactly the opposite of one of the vital behaviors—stay away from the water. If you don’t deal with personal motivation, your influence plan will fail.Source 2: Personal AbilityMany of the villagers don’t know how to properly filter water. They’ve been trying since General Gowon left, but the Guinea worm disease is still rampant. When they take the steps to filter the water, they’ll carelessly slop over a splash here and a drop there, infecting the water supply and continuing the infestation. Or they’ll transfer filtered water into a pot that’s still moist with unfiltered water. They’ll need training to enhance their personal ability.Source 3: Social MotivationNext, when you sit down with the locals to teach them how to eliminate the Guinea worm, nobody is going to pay very much attention to your advice. You’re an outsider and as such simply can’t be trusted. You may be in good with the chief, but there are three tribes in the village, two of which resent the chief and will resist anything you offer because he’s behind it. Unless circumstances change, you have a serious problem with social motivation.Source 4: Social AbilityPeople in a community will have to assist each other if they hope to succeed. When it comes to an outbreak, nobody can make it on his or her own. If ever there was a circumstance where the expression “It takes a village” applies, this is it. For example, if someone comes down with the worm, others may have to fetch water for him or her. And when it comes to filtering, locals often have to buddy up in order to have enough pots to both fetch and filter water. If locals don’t enlist the help of others, you’ll be missing the key factor of social ability.Source 5: Structural MotivationGiven the villagers’ current financial circumstances (living hand-to-mouth), individuals who become infected can’t afford to stay away from work. This forces them to labor in and around the water supply. Quite simply, to put food on the table, they’ll need to fetch water for both their crops and livestock. This means that the formal reward system is at odds with the three vital behaviors. Infected people earn money only if they work near the water source. If you don’t compensate for the existing reward structure, victims will be compelled to serve their families at the expense of the entire village. Try to move forward without addressing structural motivation, and your influence won’t reach far.Source 6: Structural AbilityLastly, locals don’t have all the tools they need to filter the water or to care for their wounds in a way that keeps them away from the community water source. Worse still, the layout of the village makes access to the public water supply so easy and natural that it’s enormously tempting for victims to merely plunge their aching arm or leg into the water—at the peril of everyone else. If you don’t work on this last source of influence, structural ability, you’re also likely to fail.