Thursday 26 March 2026 (1pm GMT)
[Image of woman walking away from the camera down a path through park land. Source: Image by GreenCardShow from Pixabay.]
Whether you like it or not, as a designer you’re in the business of influencing people’s behaviour. While there may be questionable aspects of this – in terms of driving people towards certain content online or certain products in store – there’s also a more benevolent and beneficial side. This can range from encouraging people to adopt healthier behaviours (such as walking) to stopping them harming themselves (such as by providing warnings to not go into areas that are unsafe). Rather than just saying ‘do this’ or ‘don’t walk here’, there are other ways of influencing people’s behaviour that may be more effective. As designers, we can help ourselves by understanding the science of behaviour change, so that we can be more effective in nudging people towards behaviours that are better, healthier, and more sustainable. It’s certainly worth having these ideas in your toolbox so that you can improve the likelihood that your designs are most effective at helping people to do the right thing. So, what are these ways of influencing people’s behaviour? In this talk Andrew Barker introduces three of the most widely used models of behaviour change, ones that have a rigorous body of evidence to support their effectiveness. And he suggests ways to integrate them into the sorts of projects typically worked on as part of placemaking and wayfinding design projects.
About the speaker
Andrew Barker is a designer and behavioural researcher. Throughout his career he has focussed on helping people to find the stuff they need. He has not only helped people find their way through the built environment, he has also helped people navigate digital spaces – such as apps and websites – and print spaces – such as books and bills. On the way he has won a handful of design awards, including a Design Effectiveness Award for his work redesigning the bill for a mobile telephone company so that it works better for customers. He also has a PhD from the University of Reading for his research comparing navigation strategies in the built environment, digital and print spaces. 2024 saw the publication of two books that he has written: the Sign Design Guide + (Sign Design Society, a full-scale update of the Sign Design Guide originally published in 2000), and La typographie des Penguin Classics (Bureau Brut Publishing, a translation of his case study of the redesign of Penguin Classics). Andrew currently works as a behavioural researcher for the UK Government, and is chair of the Sign Design Society.
About the event
Tickets are free for paid-up SDS members, otherwise £19 per person, available to purchase via the SDS Administrator (please email: enquiries@signdesignsociety.co.uk for more information). Unable to make the seminar on the day? You can buy time-limited access to the talk recording too.
Tickets are non-refundable, unless the seminar is cancelled. We are unable to accept credit card payments over the phone.