Presentation given at Interaction'12, February 3, 2012, Dublin, Ireland. Interest in persuasive design for behavior change has been growing rapidly in interaction design in the past years. In part thanks to that, we as designers now have ample tools and pattern libraries to inspire us. What we are lacking, however, are focus and guidance in applying them. Usually, we get those from user research. But current research methods and deliverables arguably do not provide ready springboards. This presentation demonstrates how to use the Motivation Ability Opportunity (MAO) model as a tool to structure user research around a single behavior to be changed, and to guide subsequent design in prioritizing issues to tackle and ideating ways to tackle them.

1. The Mao Model
research for
behavior change
Sebastian Deterding (@dingstweets)
Interaction’12
February 3, 2012, Dublin
cb

2. http://j.mp/yesqNM

3. Swelter more steel to accelerate
the establishment of socialism!
http://j.mp/yesqNM

4. Persuasive
Design The MAO Model Coda
1 3 5
2 4
The Problem The Method

5. Persuasive
Design
1 The MAO Model Coda
3 5
2 4
The Problem The Method

9. From Usability to Motivation

10. Persuasive Design
Design to change attitudes
and behaviors

11. »Behavior is our
medium.«
Robert Fabricant
interaction’09 (2009)

13. Why care?

14. Reason #1
Business has
changed.

15. the great beyond
utility
usability
New differentiators

16. self-
health eco/green
improvement
New markets

17. Retweet! Bookmark! Tag!
Comment!
Like! Design!
Curate!
Upload!
Mark as Spam!
Buy! Forward!
Invite!
Subscribe! Add friend! Share!
Digg! Answer! Vote!
New business models & goals

18. Reason #2
Our idea of the
human condition
has changed.

19. +
Then: The Rational Actor

20. (It shaped our work as well)

21. Now: e Social Animal

22. Rational Actor Social Animal
Individualist, detached Social, embodied
Many (also intrinsic, social)
Material self-interest
motivations
Biases, emotions, habits,
Cool calculating ratio social & material
environment
Conscious information-
Unconscious processes
processing

23. A g d workin model
http://www.flickr.com/photos/grumbler/5631948705/sizes/o/in/photostream/

24. e Rider
Conscious, deliberate reasoning
Needs goals and plans to get somewhere
Quickly tired from heavy steering
Often not alert
http://www.flickr.com/photos/grumbler/5631948705/sizes/o/in/photostream/

25. e Elephant
Emotions, habits, automatic processes
Has a mind of its own (really in charge)
Lives in the here and now
Training takes time
http://www.flickr.com/photos/grumbler/5631948705/sizes/o/in/photostream/

26. e Jungle
Social and material environment
Arouses the elephant (mice!)
Makes things harder/easier to reach
Can be cultivated by rider
Where the herd lives
http://www.flickr.com/photos/grumbler/5631948705/sizes/o/in/photostream/

27. al
on r
ti o
a t
R c
A
Ignorin the elephant and the r m

28. Persuasive
Design The MAO Model Coda
1 3 5
4
2 The Method
The Problem

29. We have t l sets ...

30. … but no real constru ion plan.

31. what we warn all clients of:
»A solution in search
of a problem«

32. Not
»This might also persuade users.«
But
»What drives and stops Peter to
do X at point Y?«

33. motivation
trigger
trigger threshold
ability
e Fog Behavior Model?
http://behaviormodel.org/

34. „Pleasure/pain, hope/fear, acceptance/rejection“
is a private theory out of sync with motivation
research; ignores attitudes and affects
motivation
trigger
trigger threshold
ability
e Fog Behavior Model?
http://behaviormodel.org/

35. Ignores self-efficacy, learning,
understanding. Quote: „Most people
resist learning new things. That’s
just how we are as humans:
lazy“ (which is untrue)
motivation
trigger
trigger threshold
ability
e Fog Behavior Model?
http://behaviormodel.org/

36. Ignores intention, goal-
setting, mindfulness
motivation
trigger
trigger threshold
ability
e Fog Behavior Model?
http://behaviormodel.org/

37. o gg
F
In ort: We‘re mi in a rider here!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/aftab/3992830809

38. A ion is me , emergent, situated
http://www.flickr.com/photos/grumbler/5631948705/sizes/o/in/photostream/

39. http://www.flickr.com/photos/automat/623260075

40. http://www.flickr.com/photos/melissagray/4379697339

41. and we‘d still like to know:
What are the relevant
motivators, enablers,
triggers for Peter to do
X in situation Y?

42. Persuasive
The Mao Model
Design
3 Coda
1 5
2 4
The Problem The Method

43. http://www.springerlink.com/content/m7128613815u7225/

44. Motivation
Pushing action
forward (or back)

45. Ability
Affording and
constraining action

46. opportunity
Finding the right/
critical moments
“Stopwatch” symbol is by The Noun Project from thenounproject.com collection.

47. wa er
be ad
re
Re
http://www.flickr.com/photos/velouria/4997235332

48. Motivation
Pushing action
forward (or back)

49. http://j.mp/xcHfVe

50. Love manual labor!
http://j.mp/xcHfVe

51. »Put hot triggers in the
path of motivated people.«
BJ Fogg
the new rules of persuasion (2009)
http://www.slideshare.net/bjfogg/bj-fogg-the-new-rules-of-persuasion-brussels-2009

52. »I‘m not convinced.«
http://www.flickr.com/photos/prescottfoland/5259812928

53. ep
St 1
#
Make people aware

54. ep
St 2
#
Help people understand
http://www.thefamilyinternational.org/en/work/africa/projects/education/143/photo/471/

55. http://j.mp/xGk85S

56. <Insert influence here>

57. Social Proof,
Authority
Liking
Social Proof
Facts

60. ep
St 3
#
Make people care

61. Appeal to motivational needs

62. Create need-satisfying experiences

63. Rel
ing
ated
ong
nes
Bel
Au
s
ton ition
om
co gn
y Re
psycholo
social
gical
nce Powe
pe te r
Com physical
Hu
x
Se
ng
Thirst
er

64. Rel
ing
ated
ong
nes
Bel
Au
s
ton ition
om
co gn
y Re
psycholo
social
gical
nce Powe
pe te r
Com physical
Hu
x
Se
ng
Thirst
er

65. That tricky beast, autonomy
http://www.flickr.com/photos/prescottfoland/5259812928

66. Lynde Kintner, Smart Sex. http://www.ac4d.com/home/philosophy/student-work/smart-sex-the-man-shield/

67. Acknowledge and defuse FUDs
http://misteringo.deviantart.com/art/Bunnies-Scream-Again-79745974

71. Use (or remove) social norms
http://www.flickr.com/photos/matthileo/4482198229

72. Motivation, in summary
knowledge Build awareness, form mental models
attitudes, emotions Connect to emotions & values
motivations Appeal to & satisfy needs
fears Acknowledge & defuse fears
social norms Use or shift contexts

73. Ability
Affording and
constraining
actions

74. http://j.mp/wdUCRx

75. Train strictly and be well-prepared
for the battle against invaders!
http://j.mp/wdUCRx

76. Support visioning
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ronsombilongallery/3240944872

77. Support visioning
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ronsombilongallery/3240944872

78. Guide goal and implementation planning

79. Guide goal and implementation planning

80. Oh, there‘s
craving.
Interesting.
Mindfulness
http://www.flickr.com/photos/johnworthington/3241165758

81. “MUST - RESIST -
CRAVING !!!“
Willpower

82. Willpower
http://www.flickr.com/photos/foshydog/3699371501
http://www.flickr.com/photos/pnjunction/2509578641

83. »With an aesthetic of convenience,
you will never instill change.
What you need, rather, is an
aesthetic of friction.«
Marc Hassenzahl
towards an aesthetic of friction (2011)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ehWdLEXSoh8

84. Cultivate mindfulness and willpower
Kehr, F., Hassenzahl, M., Laschke, M., & Diefenbach, S. (2012). A transformational product to improve self-control
strength: the Chocolate Machine. Proc. of the SIGCHI conference on Human factors in computing systems.

85. Strengthen self-efficacy
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Learned_helplessness
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self-efficacy

86. Model the behavior

87. Provide fast experiences of success

88. Defuse guilt & frustration

89. Build knowledge and skills

90. Make it easy (or hard ^_^)

91. Ensure necessary resources

92. Shape new habits
http://tinyhabits.com

93. Routines support habituation

94. Defaults support habituation

95. Train ready-to-hand alternative actions

96. »Free choice means having at
least one other way.«
Moshé Feldenkrais
the elusive obvious (1981)
http://www.ucl.ac.uk/news/news-articles/0908/09080401

97. Provide social support

98. Ability, in summary
goal-setting Support visioning, goals, planning
mindfulness, will Train the rider‘s strength
self-efficacy Model, afford successes, forgive failures
ability Train, improve usability & resources
habit Repetition until ready-to-hand/automatic
social support Providing social support

99. opportunity
Finding the right/
critical moments
“Stopwatch” symbol is by The Noun Project from thenounproject.com collection.

101. obey commands at any time!

102. καιρός

104. The Opportune Moment
Providing a catalyst when
people are motivated, able, and
have the opportunity to act.

105. Opportunities over time
macro
biography Breakdowns, periods
service lifecycle Steps (one-time/repeat)
routines Month, week, day, ...
service episode User flow, interface
micro

106. Biographic turning points

107. Service lifecycle

108. Routines: Workday
http://www.flickr.com/photos/mindcaster-ezzolicious/3050043143

109. Routines: Craving cycle

110. Service episode: Restaurant

111. Service episode: Interface

113. Always Be Closing

114. No time?

115. Defer

116. Make a future appointment

117. Allow completion in chunks

118. Don‘t disturb current goals

119. Opportunities in space

121. The Opportune Moment
Providing a catalyst when
people are motivated, able, and
have the opportunity to act.

122. What did I want?
http://www.flickr.com/photos/philandpam/1485578432

123. »After surveying the experimental findings,
one begins to wonder how people manage
to get on in their daily lives at all. ... People
are able to get on because they “offload” an
enormous amount of practical reasoning
onto their environment.«
Joseph Heath and Joel Anderson
procrastination and the extended will (2010)

124. Create wanted cues
http://www.flickr.com/photos/robandstephanielevy/4668030838

125. Created wanted cues

126. http://designinghappiness.wordpress.com/

127. Remove unwanted external cues
http://www.flickr.com/photos/a-culinary-photo-journal/3134396770

128. Remove unwanted external cues

129. Create Re-Minders
https://www.readyforzero.com/

130. Opportunity, in summary
time Find rhythms & timings
space Find spaces for action
cues Create wanted, remove unwanted
re-minders Give the rider a chance

131. Persuasive
Design The MAO Model Coda
1 3 5
2
The Problem 4
The Method

132. First, a nagging problem
http://people.virginia.edu/~tdw/nisbett&wilson.pdf

133. »Nisbett and Wilson are not skeptics
about introspective report of conscious
experiences. They are skeptics about
introspective knowledge of the causes of
those experiences.«
Eric Schwitzgebel
the nisbett-wilson myth (2006)
http://schwitzsplinters.blogspot.com/2006/10/nisbett-wilson-myth.html

134. The limits of self-report
We can report recent experiences,
general beliefs, attitudes, values
Stick to actual, current/recent experiences
We fail at detailed memory, future action,
irrelevant things, unconscious processes
Ask for connected attitudes, values, needs,
but don‘t jump to conclusions

135. ep
St 1
#
Define & ma ange goals
Be specific: »Become a better person«
doesn‘t work
Map out chain of behaviors & actors to
structure and/or focus research
If you replace an old behavior, you need to
study & address both old and new

136. Behavior chain: Eating healthy
eat
healthy
food

137. Behavior chain: Eating healthy
eat
healthy
food
avoid
mindless
snacking

138. Behavior chain: Eating healthy
cook eat
healthy healthy
food food
avoid
mindless
snacking

139. Behavior chain: Eating healthy
shop cook eat
healthy healthy healthy
food food food
avoid
mindless
snacking

140. Behavior chain: Eating healthy
shop cook eat
plan healthy
healthy healthy healthy
meals
food food food
avoid
mindless
snacking

141. Behavior chain: Eating healthy
shop cook eat
plan healthy
healthy healthy healthy
meals
food food food
actor a avoid
mindless
snacking
actor b

142. ep
St 2
#
Recruit participants
People using your service/performing
your activity (or broaden to comparable
cases)
Look for people who just did it and ...
… failed/aborted (what kept them?)
… succeeded (what enabled them?)

143. ep
St 3
#
Gather data
http://j.mp/yCqngC
http://myexperience.sourceforge.net/
http://www.kaushik.net/avinash/the-three-greatest-survey-questions-ever/
http://www.uxmatters.com/mt/archives/2011/05/capturing-meaningful-and-significant-user-experience-metrics.php

144. ep
St 3
#
Gather data
Stick to actual experiences with ...
Experience Sampling
True Intent/Voice of Customer
Shadowing/Contextual Inquiry
Interviews with participants that recently
engaged in the activity in question

145. Why?
Why?
Why?
Why?
Why?
Use laddering
Laddering
http://madpow.com/Insights/WhitePapers/Laddering--A-Research-Interview-Technique.aspx

149. Find the template
online at
http://j.mp/
maomodel

150. ep
St 4
#
Analyse the data
Analyse, aggregate and identify key
issues, looking for ...
… aligning drivers and obstacles
… things mentioned repeatedly
… things that separate successful and
unsuccessful cases
… things that are interdependent or
»root causes«

151. ep
St 5
#
Ideate
How might we address ...
Put
Put
key obstacle/
opportunity (, using pattern/card/lens )
here
here
to achieve Put desired change here ?

152. ep
St 5
#
Ideate
How might we address ...
Put
Put
key obstacle/
opportunity (, using pattern/card/lens )
here
here
to achieve Put desired change here ?

153. ep
St 5
#
Ideate
How might we address ...
Put
Put
key obstacle/
opportunity (, using pattern/card/lens )
here
here
to achieve Put desired change here ?

154. ep
St 6
#
Make a detail analysis
choose
send see
whom to write invite
invite invite
invite
sign explore accept open
up service invite invite

155. ep
St 6
#
Make a detail analysis
Ability
choose
Motivation whom to
invite
Opportunity

156. ep
St 6
#
Make a detail analysis
Take your customer journey/behavior
chain/screen flow/…, ask at each step:
What is the relevant action?
Is this the right moment? Are there
unmet preconditions, better moments?
What is de/motivating, en/disabling,
cueing?
Ideate for each step if necessary

157. ep
St 7
#
Map a journey over time

158. http://www.flickr.com/photos/grumbler/5631948705/sizes/o/in/photostream/

159. e Path
Designing change over time,
step by step
Maintenance
http://www.flickr.com/photos/grumbler/5631948705/sizes/o/in/photostream/

160. »It takes an average 66 days
to form a new habit.«
Phillippa Lally et al.
how are habits formed (2009)
http://www.ucl.ac.uk/news/news-articles/0908/09080401

161. Coda
Persuasive
Design The MAO Model 5
1 3
2 4
The Problem The Method

162. #1 way
kea
Ta
A ion is me , emergent, situated
http://www.flickr.com/photos/grumbler/5631948705/sizes/o/in/photostream/

163. ange starts with understandin the problem
Designed by Sebastian Deterding/coding conduct
p. 1
Key drivers Behavior Key obstacles
Licensed under cb
Ability
Ability
Ability
Self-e cacy
Mindfulness/grit
Obstacles
Knowlegde/skill/usability
Drivers
Habits
Resources
Social support
Motivation
Motivation
Motivation
Motivation Ability Opportunity Analysis
Awareness
Attitudes/emotions
Obstacles
Goals
Drivers
Motivations
Fears
Social norms
Opportune Moments
Biography Service lifecycle Routines Service episode
#2 way
ea k
Ta

164. »These are two types of change: one that
occurs within a given system which itself
remains unchanged, and one whose
occurrence changes the system itself. ...
Second-order change is thus change of
change.«
Paul Watzlawick et al.
change (1974: 10-11)

165. #2 tion
es
qu
Dou you build crutches …

167. … if you could build ladders?

168. http://www.flickr.com/photos/seemoredomore/4727291896

169. »The ethical imperative:
Act always so as to increase
the number of choices.«
Heinz von Foerster
on constructing a reality (1973)
http://books.google.com/books?id=mAkIVn9d-9kC&lpg=PA211&ots=gpV1PJFU2k&lr&pg=PA214#v=onepage&q&f=false

170. #2 tion
es
qu
Do you seek the right change?
http://www.guardian.co.uk/sustainable-
business/small-painless-behaviour-change

171. When discipline is reinforced,
revolution cannot fail!

172. »(A) person having a nightmare can do many
things in his dream – run, hide, fight, scream,
jump off a cliff, etc. – but no change from any
one of these behaviours to another would
ever terminate that nightmare. ... The only
way out of a dream involves a change from
dreaming to waking.«
Paul Watzlawick et al.
change (1974: 10-11)

173. Thank You.
@dingstweets
sebastian@codingconduct.cc
codingconduct.cc

174. If you liked this, you will enjoy ...
don‘t play games with me!
Promises and Pitfalls of Gameful Design

175. If you liked this, you will enjoy ...
persuasive design
or: The Fine Art of Separating People from their Bad
Behaviours

176. If you liked this, you will enjoy ...
meaningful play
Getting »Gamification« Right

177. Some References
Ariely, D. (2010). Predictably Irrational: The Hidden Forces that Shape Our Decisions. New
York: Harper Perennial. j.mp/yy6kX9
Benkler, Y. (2011). The Penguin and the Leviathan: How Cooperation Trumps Over Self-
Interest. London: Penguin. j.mp/zzGQH7
Brooks, D. (2012). The Social Animal: The Hidden Sources of Love, Character, and
Achievement. New York: Random House. j.mp/zpcc8O
Christakis, N.A. & Fowler, J.H. (2009). Connected: The Suprising Power of Our Social
Networks and How They Change Our Lives. New York: Litle, Brown and Company. j.mp/
wcgnW2
Damasio, A. (2005). Descarte‘s Error. Emotion, Reason, and the Human Brain. London:
Penguin. j.mp/y9GTQ1
Fogg, B.J. (2009). A behavior model for persuasive design. Proceedings of the 4th International
Conference on Persuasive Technology. j.mp/yRQB7R
Grist, M. (2010). STEER: Mastering Our Behaviour Through Instinct, Environment and Reason.
London: The RSA. j.mp/wjKcV1
Heath, C. & Heath, D. (2010). Switch: How to Change When Change is Hard. New York:
Broadway Books. j.mp/zPVnde

178. More References
Kahnemann, D. (2011). Thinking, fast and slow. New York: Farrar, Straus & Giroux. j.mp/
ymB3rc
Michie, S., van Starlen, M.M. & West, R. (2011). The behaviour change wheel: A new method
for characterising and designing behaviour change interventions. Implementation Science
6,42. j.mp/zkHz5p
Ölander, F. & Thogersen, J. (1995). Understanding of consumer behaviour as a prerequisite
for environmental protection. Journal of Consumer Policy 18,4, 345-385.
Pink, D. (2009). Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us. London: Penguin.
j.mp/AimHXS
Rowson, J. (2011). Transforming Behaviour Change: Beyond Nudge and Neuromania.
London: The RSA. j.mp/x8Sjl1
Thaler, R.H. & Sunstein, C. (2008). Nudge: Improving Decisions About Health, Wealth, and
Happiness. London: Penguin. j.mp/ytZGZl
Watzlawick, P., Weakland, J. & Fish, M.D. (1974). Change. Principles of Problem Formation
and Problem Resolution. W.W. Norton: New York. j.mp/zQMCIP

179. Even More References
The Chocolate Machine: Kehr, F., Hassenzahl, M., Laschke, M., & Diefenbach, S. (2012). A
transformational product to improve self-control strength: the Chocolate Machine. Proc. of the
SIGCHI conference on Human factors in computing systems.
Motivation and Emotion: Reeve, J. (2009). Understanding Motivation and Emotion, 5th. Ed.
Hoboken; John Wiley. j.mp/xa11sp
Implementation Intentions: Gollwitzer,P. M. (1999). Implementation Intentions: Strong Effects
of Simple Plans. American Psychologist 54,7. j.mp/ysqlDb
Willpower is depleted and trainable: Baumeister, R.; J. Tierny (2011). Willpower: Rediscovering
the Greatest Human Strength. New York: Penguin. j.mp/yTXL97.
Mindfulness and smoking cessation: Brewer, J.A. et. al. (2011). Mindfulness training for
smoking cessation: results from a randomized controlled trial. Drug and Alcohol Dependence
119,1-2. http://j.mp/y81CRX
Everyday willpower: Hofmann, W., Baumeister, R. F., Förster, G. & Vohs, K. D. (2012). Everyday
temptations: An experience sampling study of desire, conflict, and self-control. Journal of
Personality and Social Psychology, online first. j.mp/wRA74g

180. Image credits
Most images are cc-licensed images taken from flickr. In those cases, attribution and link to
the original photo are given on the respective slide.
All Mao posters are from the excellent maopost.com.
»Daddy, drink two glasses of water first« image of Android app is © Rajat Paharia and used
with kind permission.
»Increasing motivation, removing friction« illustration is taken from Stephen Anderson‘s
presentation The Art and Science of Seductive Interactions and used with kind permission.

181. Find the template
online at
http://j.mp/
maomodel