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. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2019 Mar 1.
Published in final edited form as: Consult Psychol J. 2018 Mar;70(1):28–44. doi: 10.1037/cpb0000094

Figure 1.

Figure 1

Behavior can be divided into four broad categories defined by the level of motivation they demand (horizontal axis) and the level of skill or ability they require (vertical axis). Behavior change typically involves moving from left-to-right, from bottom-to-top, or both. Moving from left-to-right increases the motivational demand (why) of an action, whereas moving from bottom-to-top increases the skill level (how). It is useful to identify the vector of change required during goal pursuit and to target motivational (horizontal) and cognitive (vertical) processes as necessary.