# Glossary

In the definitions in this glossary, terms that refer to concepts that are defined elsewhere in the glossary are printed in *italic*.

## General terms from psychology

**Behavior**

Behavior is often defined as muscle activity. In Intervention Mapping, behavior is defined a bit more broadly and can include decisions people take. Behaviors are always processes that take place over time.

**Construct**

In psychology, a construct is usually a hypothesized psychological variable or process. Construct definitions describe which aspects of human psychology comprise that construct.

**Determinant**

In behavior change science, a determinant, also called behavioral determinant or psycho-social determinant, is a modifiable psychological construct that is hypothesized to cause behavior or contribute to causing behavior by at least one theory.

**Logic model**

A logic model is a diagram that visualizes theoretical, empirically derived, or hypothetical relationships between concepts.

**Theory**

A theory is an explanation of a bit of the world. Theories in the social sciences often hypothesize and define one or more psychological constructs and then describe how they relate to each other.

## Intervention Mapping terms

**Change Objective**

Change Objectives are *subdeterminants* that have been formulated according to a specific set of guidelines. They are representations of the corresponding subdeterminant in a measurable form.

**Environmental Agent**

Environmental agents, sometimes called environmental actors, are people or groups of people that have agency over one or more environmental conditions.

**Environmental Condition**

An environmental condition is an aspect of the environment of the target population, of an environmental agent, or of an implementer.

**Environmental Level**

An environmental level is the level at which an environmental agent exists. These levels determine which methods are available for targeting those agents.

**Performance Objective**

A performance objective is a sub-behavior. The concept is used to get more fine-grained insights into the determinants and environmental conditions that together predict a behavior.

## Non-IM behavior change terms

**ABCD**

An Acyclic Behavior Change Diagram is to step 3 of IM what a Matrix of Change Objectives is to step 2: it succinctly illustrates structural-causal chains in an intervention logic model.

**Aspect of the human psyche**

An aspect of the human psyche is a raw expression of somebody's psyche, for example "I really hate broccoli!" or "At that party, everybody was drinking cocktails."

**COMPLECS**

COMPLECS is a recursive acronym for COMPLECS Organises Multiple Players & Linked Environments using Connected Specifications.

**CIBER plot**

A Confidence Interval-Based Estimation of Relevance plot is a visualization to help select sub-determinants to intervene on.

**MAP**

A Map of Aspects of the Psyche, MAP, shows all psychological aspects that may cause a target behavior.

**Sub-determinant**

A sub-determinant is an *aspect* that has been categorized as a specific psychological construct, that is, a determinant. These are important in behavior change science and practice because behavior change interventions can only target concrete and specific content.