Real World Behavioural Science

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Samuel Salzer joins me, Stu King, for this month's RWBS podcast. Samuel Salzer is an experienced behavioural strategist specialising in the digital health space. His work involves applying insights from behavioural science and behavioural economics to build user-centered and habit-forming products and services.

In our discussion we covered how Samuel entered the field to where he is now with consulting work and his newsletter Habit Weekly. It now has thousands of subscribers and goes out to over a hundred countries.

Samuel shared some of the best work he has seen such as mental health apps created with behavioural experts and research that showed how long it actually takes to form a habit! He shared his use of behaviour science to change his own habits - such as understanding why his long streak of learning a language every day still wasn't sticking. Samuel suggests the best way to start using behavioural economics in your work without being overwhelmed by all the content out there.

You can check out and sign up to Samual's Habit Weekly newsletter yourself - it has something for every level, from leaders in the field to those just starting out.
Don't forget you can become a member of the BSPHN for just £25 or £10 if a student for lots of benefits and access to content.

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The fourth episode in this mini-series, recorded on 26th March 20, covers some big topics, including:

• Individual strategies to staying physically and mentally healthy during this challenging period of staying at home
• The governments response to date and what to expect in the future
• How we can come together as a society to care for each other and how this should continue after the immediate crisis is over.

Stuart King, Professor Susan Michie and Professor Jim McManus discuss these issues in detail in this slightly longer episode than the previous ones. Unfortunately we lose Jim after just a couple of questions as he had technical difficulties as home. We are all dealing with small challenges like this as we adjust to home working, and in this case, remote recording.

However, Jim still provides valuable insight in the beginning and Susan continues to provide valuable and interesting ideas for people; insight into the Government response to date and in the future; and some personal anecdotes that help contextualise how to use each moment and challenge as an opportunity to create healthy habits.

Please send questions or comments to @stu_king_hh on twitter, add me on Linked In or email me at [email protected]. If there are people you want to hear from or questions you want us to answer then let me know.

Stay healthy; stay active; stay connected; but most of all - Stay Home!

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The third episode in the coronavirus mini-series deals with the difficulties and realities of self-isolation.
Stuart King, Professor Susan Michie and Professor Jim McManus discuss the behavioural reasons behind panic buying and other crowd behaviours, the need to sensibly and realistically plan for isolation, including preparing for how we might feel and react.
Isolation is a time when we need to think about both our mental and physical health, but also that of others. They explore what people can do to create strategies to help keep in good health and look after others who are vulnerable.
The conversation also touches upon the impact of isolation on income, here is a link to Money Saving Expert article on financial support.

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Recorded 11th March 2020
Jim McManus and Susan Michie join host, Stuart King, for another discussion on using behavioural science to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

Susan and Jim cover the importance of not just hand washing, but using tissues and cleaning surfaces as the virus is spread not just through physical contact, but through the air too.

The discussion also covers the impact of giving feedback to others to reinforce those preventative behaviours, as well as how we need to have a population mindset. Although you might not be at risk, you may be in contact with those who are. What can we do to protect those vulnerable people directly, and prevent over-stretching of the health services.

Mini-Series #3 has been recorded and will be released next week so stay tuned for more practical, evidence-based advice.

Susan Michie's BMJ article on avoiding shaking hands:
https://blogs.bmj.com/bmj/2020/03/10/should-we-wave-goodbye-to-the-handshake/
Susan Michie's BMJ article on behavioural strategies to prevent spread: https://blogs.bmj.com/bmj/2020/03/03/behavioural-strategies-for-reducing-covid-19-transmission-in-the-general-population/

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In this Real World Behavioural Science special, Susan, Jim and I discuss how behavioural science can be used to help prevent the spread of COVID19 (Coronavirus).

Susan shares some of the insights from her recently published BMJ blog on using COM B to provide clear, effective and simple strategies to use to prevent the spread of infection. Jim provides some food for thought about using social psychology to try to slow the rate of transmission.

If you are a professional (or anyone else for that matter!), this podcast contains some helpful tips that could save lives. Big thank you to Susan and Jim for their time in sharing some great ideas on using behavioural sciences to limit the potential impact of Coronavirus.

Useful links:
Hertfordshire CC's Coronavirus social norms campaign toolkit (launching Friday 6th March): http://bit.ly/2PPFtim
Hertfordshire CC's Coronavirus FAQs: http://bit.ly/2TGlTq6
Prof Susan Michie's on behavioural science in the PH response: http://bit.ly/3ctIOxg
Prof Susan Michie's on using COM-B to reduce transmission: http://bit.ly/3cDqba6 

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Dr Tim Chadborn is Head of Behavioural Insights and Evaluation Lead for Public Health England.  He shares just a small amount of his 25 years of experience working in health, across the Department of Health, Health Protection Agency and on a partnership between the Ministry of Health and Botswana.

We chatted through Tim's vast experience from his work on the Family Nurse Partnership (https://fnp.nhs.uk/) supporting pregnant teenage women to his work in Botswana on HIV.
This led us to discuss the diversity in paths that have led people to work in Behavioural Insights and how this allows them to work in a multidisciplinary capacity, across behavioural economics, sociology, health psychology, research and more.

Tim shared some of the recent and current behaviour insights projects, such the marrying of large complex systems approaches and individual behavioural science, and the digital work on diet and obesity support and health checks e.g. letters, texts, videos in wait rooms and I.T. prompts.

Finally Tim shared some ideas on how to get into behavioural science, including some of the latest strategies and guides to come out, such as the Behavioural and Social Science Strategy (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/improving-peoples-health-applying-behavioural-and-social-sciences).

Also, PHE have just released another guide for local government called Achieving Behaviour Change available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/behaviour-change-guide-for-local-government-and-partners.

Thanks for listening and please do share and leave feedback on the podcast!

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Kim Roberts has been HENRY’s Chief Executive since 2012. Her background is in family support and early development, which has given her both a profound insight into the impact of children’s very early experiences and a passionate determination to make sure that parents and practitioners get the quality of support they need to provide children with the best start in life.
Our discussion starts with Kim sharing why, and how, HENRY is so important in preventing childhood obesity, rather than just tackling it. We talk through her experiences of working with families who have many struggles other than just health and lifestyle, and how helping parents with these realities is an important first step.
Kim shares her views on where behavioural science is at in the industry, and how to ensure that professionals have not only the right skills, but also the right support, to deliver behaviour change in the most effective way.

It's the last couple of weeks to sign up to the Behavioural Science Public Health Network Annual Conference on 12th February, which includes the latest strategy in behaviour science and how to make an impact in the industry. Tickets here: https://www.bsphn.org.uk/428/Annual-Conference-2020 

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Professor Wendy Wills is the Professor of Food and Public Health and Director of the Centre for Research in Public Health and Community Care at the School of Health and Social Work at the University of Hertfordshire. She works at the interface of social sciences and public health across food and eating practices, food safety, malnutrition, weight and obesity and health inequalities.

Our conversation covers some real world examples of putting research into practice. We discuss Wendy's passion for using emergent ways of working, such as a whole systems approach, due to the importance of understanding the real complexities (and messiness!) of peoples lives. This work is often laborious, and we talk about how it can require a lot of bravery to take on. She uses examples of her work understanding food shopping, and how giving a space for young people to explore how they felt in their local area helped to better understand the influences on their health behaviours.  You can read more on her UH portal page: http://researchprofiles.herts.ac.uk/portal/en/persons/wendy-wills(4a9fafa2-1abf-49c3-a84c-4d5b47ffb3e7).html

The BSPHN Annual Conference is on the 12th February and there are still tickets available: https://www.bsphn.org.uk/428/Annual-Conference-2020 

Now we are back in the swing of the new year you can expect the next Podcast with Kim Roberts, Chief Executive of HENRY, up in the first week of February.

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This is the second instalment of the 2-part Christmas Special with Professor Mike Kelly. If you haven’t listened to part 1, why not do them in order!

In part 1 of our discussion we covered Mike's own experience working in public health across a huge range of research topics from the prevention of non-communicable disease to end of life care, all of which have close links to behaviour change and other social matters.

In part 2 we discuss the application of behaviour change theories in the real world. Mike speaks about creating NICE guidance and how evidence is, sometimes incorrectly, used when creating interventions. We also cover the issue of inequalities and how he personally uses behavioural science in his everyday life.
 
Enjoy the show and whilst listening, why not go to the BSPHN.org.uk to book your place at the 2020 Annual conference, taking place on 12th February? 

Finally, we at the BSPHN hope you have an amazing Christmas 🎄and New Year 📅

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This Christmas Special (Part 1) features Professor Mike Kelly, who is Senior Visiting Fellow in the Department of Public Health and Primary Care at the Institute of Public Health and a member of St John's College at the University of Cambridge. Mike is the Ex Director of NICE, where he spent over 10 years leading the organisation to support people working in the public health industry to use evidence-based methodologies.

In part one of our discussion we cover Mike's experience working in public health across a huge range of research topics from the prevention of non-communicable disease to end of life care, all of which have close links to behaviour change and other social matters.

Through his work at NICE he came across some criticism for being part of a 'nanny state' and trying to do more than simply advise people on how to live healthily. Mike takes us through how science and advice can face stumbling blocks when being recommended to local authorities and even individuals, as well as how the approach to public health has moved from a macro or social scale (environment) to a much more micro scale (individual medications etc), and how this might well be shifting back to a realisation that 'we are the way we live'.

Finally, Mike discusses the problems we face translating ideas and languages between sociology, biology and behavioural science, and how we then implement those ideas.

Part two will be out Friday 20th December as a Christmas treat, and will unpick Mike's applications of behavioural science, including nudge theory and choice architecture.