This overview of recent research on health behaviour change in developing countries shows progress as well as pitfalls. In order to provide guidance to health and social scientists seeking to change common practices that contribute to illness and death, there needs to be a common approach to developing interventions and evaluating their outcomes. Strategies forming the basis of interventions and programs to change behaviour need to focus on three sources: theories of behaviour change, evidence for the success and failure of past attempts, and an in-depth understanding of one’s audience.

Behaviour change communication is vital for increasing the enactment of particular behaviours known to promote health and growth. The techniques used to change behaviour are important for determining how successful the intervention is. In order to integrate findings from different interventions, we need to define and organize the techniques previously used and connect them to effectiveness data.

Without water people cannot survive, but without good sanitation and hygiene practices the water available could become contaminated and lead to disease and death. Every year 1.5 million people, most of them children, die from complications associated with diarrhea that they picked up from dirty water.