One of the behavioural questions Chambon investigated was to what extent people accept sustainable alternatives to plastic medical devices. ‘Think of all those plastic packaging materials, catheters, tubes, gloves, needles and connectors. The healthcare sector also faces the enormous challenge of becoming more sustainable. The acceptance of sustainable alternatives plays an important role in this, but what drives people in this context is difficult to predict; it's not just about sustainability, but also about health and about safety. To understand this, we need a method that can handle this complexity.’

Psychological network approach

The method that Chambon tested is the relatively new “psychological network approach”. ‘In psychology we often look at simplistic models that explain how a certain factor leads to specific behaviour. In the psychological network approach, we gather a wide variety of factors that research has shown to influence behaviour. For example, how you feel and think about something, what you know about it, how much trust you have, how healthy you are, etc. Using questionnaires we then investigate among a broad group of people how all these factors and behaviour are connected. This allows us to draw lines, thin for a weak relationship and thick for a strong relationship, creating a network.’

Chambon applied this method to several behavioural issues. The aforementioned acceptance of sustainable medical devices, but also the willingness to follow health guidelines during the COVID-19 pandemic and to get vaccinated. ‘Both these issues involve issues of health, safety and sustainability, which makes understanding behaviour extra complex and testing this method extremely suitable.’

It depends on the subject

For each issue, there were strong differences in which factors correlated with intentions and behaviour. For example, the acceptance of sustainable medical devices was strongly associated with people's emotions. Conversely, the willingness to adhere to COVID-19 rules showed a strong relationship with beliefs and how individuals perceived the behaviour of their family and friends. And while we often think that the intention to get vaccinated is predicted by beliefs and emotions, during the COVID-19 pandemic, it turned out to be the other way around. ‘These findings refine our understanding of behaviour,’ Chambon explains.

Not everything goes from left to right

Chambon's research also shows that there is not always a clear linear relationship. ‘It doesn't always go from left to right, from certain factors to behaviour. It can also go the other way.’ As an example, she mentions how the pandemic study revealed how different factors continue to reinforce each other: ‘Someone who becomes more involved by following the news, has more support for the guidelines, which in turn leads to greater involvement and adherence to rules, resulting in more support again.’

A roadmap to assist interventions

Chambon concluded that it is important to first thoroughly understand a behavioural issue, to ‘really delve into it’, before attempting to change this behaviour with interventions. ‘That takes time, but you will also save time making interventions much more effective. The networks with psychological variables can serve as a sort of roadmap that helps identify the variables to focus on.’

Thesis details

Monique Chambon, 2024, 'The Complexity of Behaviour in relation to Health, Safety and Sustainability: A Psychological Network Approach'. Supervisor: Prof. Dr. F. van Harreveld, co-supervisors: Dr. Ir. J.E. Elberse and Dr. J. Dalege.

Date and location of defense

Wednesday, April 17th, 1:00-2:30 PM,  Agnietenkapel, Amsterdam