The Behavior Gap

Why training rarely changes behavior. What incentives, friction, and risk allocation actually drive what people do in organizations.

▶️ Play the simulation | 📖 Read the theory

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What Is This?

A 15–20 minute interactive experience where you work through real workplace scenarios as a consultant. You'll diagnose why change efforts stall — and discover a pattern that explains most of them.

No signup. No email capture. Just learning.

The Core Insight

Organizations invest billions in training. Most of it doesn't change what people actually do.

The problem isn't the training. It's that training targets knowledge and motivation — while behavior is mostly shaped by context: what the system makes easy, safe, and rewarded.

This simulation helps you feel that gap, not just understand it.

Who It's For

• HR and L&D professionals tired of initiatives that don't stick
• Managers who've watched good training disappear into old habits
• Leaders trying to drive real behavior change
• Anyone curious about why organizations work the way they do

What You'll Learn

1. Why training alone rarely changes behavior — even when people understand and agree
2. The four forces that shape what people do: Incentives, Friction, Risk, Norms
3. A diagnostic checklist to use before your next change initiative
4. When training does work — and what makes the difference

The Research Behind It

This simulation draws on:

• COM-B Model (Michie, van Stralen, West) — Capability, Opportunity, Motivation → Behavior
• Behavioral Economics (Thaler, Sunstein, Kahneman) — how defaults and friction shape choices
• Organizational Psychology (Argyris, Schön) — the gap between what we say and what systems reward
• Habit Research (Wendy Wood) — how context drives automatic behavior

How to Run Locally

git clone https://github.com/SamirSaad786/behavior-gap-game.git
cd behavior-gap-game
npm install
npm run dev

Deploy to GitHub Pages

1. Build the project: npm run build
2. The dist folder contains your deployable files
3. Push to a gh-pages branch or use GitHub Actions

Or use any static hosting (Netlify, Vercel, etc.)

Project Structure

behavior-gap-game/
├── src/
│   ├── BehaviorGapGame.jsx   # Main game component (all screens)
│   ├── main.jsx              # Entry point
│   └── index.css             # Tailwind styles
├── index.html
├── package.json
├── vite.config.js
├── tailwind.config.js
└── README.md

The entire game lives in one React component. All state is managed locally — nothing is tracked or stored.

Customization

Want to add your own scenarios? The structure is straightforward:

1. Add a new screen to the screens object in BehaviorGapGame.jsx
2. Follow the pattern: intro → discovery → choice → feedback
3. Connect it to the navigation flow

Each scenario follows the same arc: surface what leadership believes → show what's actually happening → present choices → reveal the pattern.

Credits

Built by Samir Saad · HR Business Partner · SPHR · MS in Human Resource Development LinkedIn · GitHub

Inspired by the work of Susan Michie, Richard Thaler & Cass Sunstein, Chris Argyris, and Wendy Wood.

License

MIT — use it, share it, build on it.

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The best training teaches people to see the system, not just improve their behavior within it.