Less Fizzy Drinks: A Multi-method Study of Persuasive Reminders

In this paper, we present initial outcomes from our multi-method study that explored the impact of reminders on effectiveness of information systems that aim to facilitate behaviour change. Our study explicitly focused on reminders as a key persuasive software feature that should be employed to support behaviour change. We designed a prototype aiming to encourage people to gradually reduce soda/fizzy drinks consumption. A multi-method 14-day pilot study was conducted, composed of statistical analysis followed by a qualitative focus group. Statistical analysis shows that participants consumed less fizzy drinks in the second half of the study, and feedback from the focus group study indicates that reminders successfully persuaded participants to keep a log of their fizzy drink consumption. Our study supports the claim that persuasive reminders have extraordinary potential for helping people change their behaviours.