Evidence map›Paper›PMID 30304386›Full record

ReviewAnnals of behavioral medicine : a publication of the Society of Behavioral Medicine2019

Behavior Change Techniques and Their Mechanisms of Action: A Synthesis of Links Described in Published Intervention Literature.

Rachel N Carey, Lauren E Connell, Marie Johnston, Alexander J Rothman, Marijn de Bruin, Michael P Kelly, Susan Michie

2 registry-linked trialsAbstract readReview
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Review in Annals of behavioral medicine : a publication of the Society of Behavioral Medicine, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to 2 registered trials, which are not on this map. Cited by 388 papers, 17 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
388citing papers in PubMed, 17 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

NCT05252780 nacompletednot on this map

"My Body, My Rhythm, My Voice": a Community Dance Intervention Engaging Breast Cancer Survivors in Physical Activity in a Middle-income Country

TypeinterventionalSponsorOlga Lucia SarmientoRan2019 to 2020Enrolled64ConditionsPhysical Inactivity, Breast CancerArmsMy Body, My Rhythm, My Voice
NCT06435650 nacompletednot on this mapstarted 2023, after this paper: background citation

The Use of Mindful Compassion and Cannabis Suppositories for Anal Pain Among Men Who Have Sex With Men

TypeinterventionalSponsorLondon Metropolitan UniversityRan2023 to 2024Enrolled52ConditionsPain, Sexual Intercourse, MArmsCannabis suppositories and mindful-compassion for anal pain, Mindful-compassion
3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

388 citing papers in PubMed, 17 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

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  10. Emotional Eating Interventions for Adults Living With Overweight and Obesity: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Behaviour Change Techniques.Journal of human nutrition and dietetics : the official journal of the British Dietetic Association · 2025
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  15. Lower-Intensity Interventions for Prediabetes: A Systematic Review.American journal of preventive medicine · 2023
    Pooled it
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  19. Supporting Physical Activity and Quality of Life in Older Adults with Coronary Heart Disease: Development of a Web-Based Nursing Intervention.The Canadian journal of nursing research = Revue canadienne de recherche en sciences infirmieres · 2026
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328 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

Rachel N CareyCentre for Behaviour Change, University College London, 1-19 Torrington Place, London WC1E 7HB, UK.
Lauren E ConnellCentre for Behaviour Change, University College London, 1-19 Torrington Place, London WC1E 7HB, UK.
Marie JohnstonAberdeen Health Psychology Group, Institute of Applied Health Sciences, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, UK.
Alexander J RothmanDepartment of Psychology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA.
Marijn de BruinAberdeen Health Psychology Group, Institute of Applied Health Sciences, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, UK.
Michael P KellyPrimary Care Unit, Institute of Public Health, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.
Susan MichieCentre for Behaviour Change, University College London, 1-19 Torrington Place, London WC1E 7HB, UK.

Funding

Training in Behavioral & Preventive MedicineT32HL076134 · NHLBI · MIRIAM HOSPITAL · PI John Graham Thomas · 2006 to 2026
$5.7M
Medical Research Council MR/K023195/1Medical Research Council MR/L011115/1NHLBI NIH HHS T32 HL076134
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundDespite advances in behavioral science, there is no widely shared understanding of the "mechanisms of action" (MoAs) through which individual behavior change techniques (BCTs) have their effects. Cumulative progress in the development, evaluation, and synthesis of behavioral interventions could be improved by identifying the MoAs through which BCTs are believed to bring about change. PURPOSE: This study aimed to identify the links between BCTs and MoAs described by authors of a corpus of published literature.

methodsHypothesized links between BCTs and MoAs were extracted by two coders from 277 behavior change intervention articles. Binomial tests were conducted to provide an indication of the relative frequency of each link.

resultsOf 77 BCTs coded, 70 were linked to at least one MoA. Of 26 MoAs, all but one were linked to at least one BCT. We identified 2,636 BCT-MoA links in total (mean number of links per article = 9.56, SD = 13.80). The most frequently linked MoAs were "Beliefs about Capabilities" and "Intention." Binomial test results identified up to five MoAs linked to each of the BCTs (M = 1.71, range: 1-5) and up to eight BCTs for each of the MoAs (M = 3.63, range: 1-8).

conclusionsThe BCT-MoA links described by intervention authors and identified in this extensive review present intervention developers and reviewers with a first level of systematically collated evidence. These findings provide a resource for the development of theory-based interventions, and for theoretical understanding of intervention evaluations. The extent to which these links are empirically supported requires systematic investigation.

Indexed as

Psychological TheoryBehavior TherapyHumansBehavior changeBehavior change techniqueEvidence synthesisMechanism of actionMethodologyTheory

Identifiers

PMID30304386
PMCPMC6636886

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.