Behavioral Diagnostics for Public Policy: New Edition Fall 2026

This applied course is designed as the natural next step for those who have completed our "Introduction to Behavioral Science in Public Policy" course. Where the introductory course explores how people think, this course teaches you what to do with that knowledge: how to diagnose a behavioral challenge before you design a solution.

Most policies fail not because the idea is wrong, but because they assume too much about how people actually behave. Drawing on real World Bank projects across more than 100 countries, this course walks you through a structured diagnostic process used by the Mind, Behavioral, and Development (eMBeD) team: defining the behavior that matters, mapping the journey people take to get there, and uncovering what's truly blocking them. By the end, you will have run a full diagnostic on a guided case study and on your own policy challenge.

  • Duration

    8 hours

  • Video

    6 videos

  • Training typology

    e-learning

  • Community

    Multiple Forums
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What's included?

  • Videos
  • Text materials
  • Interactive case study
  • Apply-to-your-own-project workbench
  • Forum discussions
  • Quizzes
  • Free Certification

Learning Objectives

  • Define a behavioral problem with precision, distinguishing what people do from what we want them to do.
  • Map the full journey behind a target behavior, surfacing the hidden steps where people drop off.
  • Diagnose the real barriers blocking action — capability, opportunity, or motivation — using a structured framework.
  • Apply the full diagnostic process to a policy challenge of your own.

Target Audience

Policy practitioners, program managers, and researchers ready to put behavioral science to work on a real policy challenge. Some prior exposure to behavioral science — through our Introduction to Behavioral Science in Public Policy course or equivalent — will help you get the most out of the experience.

Course Lessons

Our tRAINERS

Meet our core team


Renos Vakis

Head of the Mind, Behavior, and Development Unit (eMBeD), the World Bank Group

Laura de Reynal

BEHAVIORAL DESIGNER AT THE MIND, BEHAVIOR AND DEVELOPMENT UNIT (EMBED), THE WORLD BANK GROUP 

Our partners