Actors and ways of intervention

This chapter deals with the concept of social change programmes. We discuss some of the background of the theoretical and political issues entailed in attempts to solve lifestyle-related problems. Next, we introduce different actors, such as policy makers, market enterprises and civil society organisations, the main players who launch various interventions into consumers’ and citizens’ lives. After that, we juxtapose competing approaches (mainly individual-based social marketing and behavioural economics, including ‘Nudge’) with practice-change conceptualisation, although a more detailed discussion of the latter takes place in Chapter 2. The aim is to give programme designers a basic map of the field, in terms of concepts and actors, which will help them to position themselves.