Moments of Change

Many of our everyday behaviors are habits, which are hard to break. But certain periods of profound, rapid disruption in people’s lives can act as catalysts for change by disrupting the context of habits. These periods are known as “moments of change” (MoCs). They may be planned or unexpected. MoCs can be divided into two categories: biographical events or “life transitions” – such as relocation, becoming a parent, starting university, and retiring – and exogenous events, such as extreme weather events, infrastructure disruption, economic shock, and political crises. Biographical MoCs operate at the individual or household level (e.g., relocation, parenthood), whereas exogenous MoCs operate at a wider scale (e.g., financial crises, pandemics, droughts). MoCs may remove cues that maintain habits and may change the social, economic, and physical contexts of action, leading the individual to consider alternatives (see Behavior Change). This window of opportunity is one in which people are open to making new decisions or finding themselves in a new context that catalyzes or even imposes behavior changes. These windows of opportunity can make behavior change interventions more effective during this period than in more stable times.