Glossary
Instruction on how to perform the behavior
What is instruction on how to perform the behavior?
Instruction on how to perform the behavior means advising or agreeing with someone on the steps needed to carry it out.
How the technique is defined
Explaining the steps, showing a demonstration, and arranging practice are separately identifiable techniques. They can be combined, but providing instructions alone does not demonstrate that the learner can perform the task accurately.
Example of behavioral instruction
A trainer gives a new employee a sequence of steps for completing an equipment inspection, then separately observes a practice attempt.
Making instructions usable
For the inspection example, the trainer can put the approved steps in the order they must be done, explain unfamiliar equipment terms, and keep the instructions available at the inspection point. Ask the employee to explain what each step requires, then observe the practice attempt. Confusion about a term calls for a clearer explanation; being able to repeat a step but not perform it may call for demonstration or practice. These are ways to check the instructions, not a guarantee that a well-formatted list will produce correct performance.
Why instructions matter
The original BCT Taxonomy v1 definitions identify this as technique 4.1. Instructions address the question “What do I do, and how?” They can help make the required action clear, but cannot by themselves supply time, equipment, or a reason to do it. The taxonomy describes intervention content; it does not establish the effectiveness of every set of instructions.