Toronto Cycling Think and Do Tank
  • Home
  • About Us
    • Purpose
    • People
    • Partners
    • University of Toronto School of the Environment
    • Contact Us
  • Projects
    • Bike Host: Building Mobility and Community through Cycling Mentorship
    • Cycling for All: An urban cycling Think & Do Tank
    • Increasing Cycling for Transportation in Canadian Communities
    • Pedalwise Bicycle Metorship Program
    • Mobilizing Business Communities to Support Safe Cycling Infrastructure
    • Scarborough Cycles
  • Publications and Research
    • Toronto Cycling Data >
      • Data on Cycling Behaviour in Toronto
      • Mapping Cycling Behaviour in Toronto >
        • A Snapshot of Cycling Behaviour in Toronto
        • Mapping Cycling Behaviour in Toronto (2011 Data)
        • Mapping Cycling Behaviour in Toronto (2006 Data)
        • Cycling Shops and Service Facilities in Toronto
        • Proportion of Trips in Toronto under 5km by mode
        • Population density by ward
        • Identification of wards suitable for further study
    • Social Infrastructure: Behaviour Change Techniques >
      • Behaviour Change Literature Matrix
      • Barriers: Identification and Removal
    • Publications
    • Newsletters >
      • Winter 2013 Newsletter
  • Resources
    • Behaviour Change Training Module
  • Blog

Summer 2013 Behaviour Change Pilot Projects

Picture
In the summer of 2013 we undertook two behaviour change pilot projects. The first occurred in two apartment towers housing graduate students with families. The second took place in conjunction with CultureLink settlement services. While similar in design, the projects had differing methods of communication and participant selection. The pilot projects employed several psychological tools to leverage the social environment and thereby affect norms, and increase the initiation and maintenance of cycling for transportation. These included: the use of the foot in the door technique through two commitments, the first being minimal and the second being large; the public display of these commitments to support the shift in social norms and leverage individual participants behaviour to increase participation and adherence of the group; the use of weekly prompts about accessible events and supports for new cyclists; and the use of priming that occurred close in proximity and time to the execution of the behaviour. Participant attitudes towards cycling, their perceptions of peer-group attitudes and their cycling behaviour were measured prior to and upon completion of the program.
We are currently consolidating data and analyzing results. 

© Toronto Cycling Think & Do Tank, School of the Environment, University of Toronto 2016. The material on this site (reports, maps, charts and diagrams), created by the Toronto Cycling Think & Do Tank is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.

Our research contributions are made possible through the generous support of the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, The Metcalf Foundation, support from our partners and prior funding from the Heart and Stroke Foundation. Currently this research is contributing to projects and cycling programs in the Cities of Toronto, Scarborough and Ottawa, and the Regional Municipality of Peel. 
Picture