Glossary
Information about health consequences
What is information about health consequences?
Information about health consequences means communicating the health effects associated with performing a behavior. The information may be written, spoken, or visual.
What the message does
The message explains a consequence: what a behavior may mean for health. That differs from teaching the person how to perform an action or changing the conditions that make it possible. The health claim itself needs sound evidence.
Illustrative example
A smoking-cessation service explains the health risks of continued smoking using current clinical evidence.
Is health information enough to change behavior?
The original BCT Taxonomy v1 definitions identify this as technique 5.1. It describes the message; it does not assess its effectiveness. I would ask whether the person lacks the information in the first place. If they already understand a risk but face a difficult routine, limited resources or competing priorities, repeating the warning does not address those barriers. Information can answer “why”; the person may still need help with “how.” That is different from claiming health information never works.