OurCommute
Designed a program to help employees make a commuting mode change
Using psychology to inspire behavior change
I worked with our psychology intern to brainstorm different psychology tactics we could use to inspire a positive behavior change. Some of these methods ended up being:
Motivational interviewing
A directive, client-centered counseling style for eliciting behavior change
Stages of change
Five stages of change are precontemplation, contemplation, preparation, action, and maintenance.
Internal & external motivation
Internal motivation comes from within the person and external motivation comes from outside forces
Problem
One of the most powerful things an organization can do to slow climate change is to reduce commuting emissions. While our clients are motivated to incentivize sustainable travel, they do not have the tools available to help them achieve this goal.
How might we...
Incentivize our client’s employees to reduce commuting emissions on their daily commute.
Findings from External Trial
Small changes made large impacts
participants in the OurCommute trial saved 86 Kg CO2e over the course of the 4-week challenge (equivalent to more than three trees each year) and more than 36 hours additional exercise.
Participants were highly motivated to achieve their goal
“It was a great experience. I felt like the weekly check-ins held me accountable and I appreciated that.”
OurCommute helps to change perception
"I was a bit sceptical. I thought I probably wouldn't stick to it, but was surprised when I actually found it to be quite good."
Adapting to new information during the challenge may support behaviour change
"The only thing that would have motivated me more was having the ability to have the plan set out for my own personal circumstance."
Participants felt positive about the experience and the change was easier than they expected
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Participants perceived the weekly check-ins and accountability as more motivating than the rewards.
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All Abley participants were interested in continuing to commute using their new mode
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Key Takeaways
We used our internal trial findings to refine our requirements and develop wireframes for the MVP
02.
Review journey planning and goal setting
We provide journey plans which outline key information related to their route to work and the potential advantages of switching modes
01.
Registration and set-up
Understanding current participant commuting patterns, motivations and mode preferences
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Incentives
A range of weekly rewards were used to encourage people to stick with their behaviour change
04.
Weekly check-ins
Check-ins were an opportunity for participants to think about how they might make their commute easier.
4 Week Internal Commuting Trial
The internal trial involved three Abley employees who currently drive to work. We tested the assumption that accountability, using motivations and incentives would help individuals to stick to a sustainable commuting goal of bussing, biking, or walking at least once a week. This included manually sending check-ins and messages through Teams chat to individuals and providing prizes when goals were achieved.
Timeline
10.22 - 07.23
Team
Abley Innovation team:
UX Designer
Developers
Psychology student
Project manager
My Role
UX designer + UX researcher
Distinctions
Project funded by round 1 of Waka Kotahi’s innovation fund
Iteration and integration
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More engagement is needed upfront to onboard people to OurCommute
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Integration into current emission reporting tool being used by companies (CarbonWise)
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Improve automation and autonomy for participants to change their goal/mode