CHAPTER 6: THE STRATEGIC AND TACTICAL APPROACH TO SUSTAINABILITY BEHAVIOUR CHANGE
in order to turn on the lights but have no connection with the many processes that led to the delivery of that electricity to our homes. If we knew more about the ways in which our food was treated/handled before it arrived at the supermarket, or if we had a clear picture of the various activities and impacts that bring us our energy, would this information make a difference to our decision making process? The answer in most cases is ‘yes’. In order for our behaviour to change we must have a personal connection with the new behaviour. This means that we must identify with the new behaviour or with the reasons for the behaviour. For example, companies that are targeting energy efficiency behaviour change should be seeking to ensure that employees have understood the reasons for the change and have developed a personal connection with the change by identifying personally with the risks and consequences of a wasteful approach to energy. Ideally each individual in the organisation should understand the relationship between energy and cost, the relationship between energy and the environment, and their own role in energy conservation.
Connecting with the Changer Establishing a connection with the desired change is generally not enough if the individual has not connected with the organisation that is leading that change. Regardless of any shift in personal constructs, if the individual does not feel a connection with the leadership it is unlikely that any changes are sustained in the long term (see barriers to change above). The organisation should first look seriously at its own value systems and at its leadership before embarking on what could potentially be a wasted exercise.
Making it Personal Making a connection with the desired behaviour is a necessary first step, but real sustained change comes from shifting the individual to a state where he or she wants to make the change. Behaviour change strategies are currently being used effectively to achieve results and to build capacity in organisations. Successful campaigns are empowering employees around new concepts that affect their lives outside the walls of the organisation. An important component in these campaigns is the requirement for a personal connection with the desired change, not just through a narrow focus on individual workplace persona but on the inclusion of social interaction, lifestyles, norms and values, which may collectively contribute to sustained behaviour change. The power of the ‘want to’ versus that of the ‘have to’ is huge and this is because the part of our brain that deals with seeking out pleasure or reward is entirely different from the part that deals with avoidance. Consider the personal research of Dr. Jesse Schell of Carnegie Mellon’s Entertainment Technology Centre in the USA. Schell reports on his own experiences with mobile phone ‘apps’ that are designed to alter behaviour relating to diet and exercise (and which are extremely popular). Schell subscribed to a top selling application (MyFitnessPal) which prompted him to enter information relating to calorie intake and details about exercise, throughout the day. Initially, he was intrigued with the system and for the first few weeks he did well. However, as time progressed he found it more and more difficult to maintain the information gathering and inputting process and eventually began to regard the process as a chore (a ‘have to’ behaviour). Another application that he tried (Fitocracy) used a similar approach to gathering diet and exercise information but included a ‘social’ component
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