Talk
Most behavior change training fails not because the content is wrong, but because it was only ever designed for one type of learner. Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is typically framed as an accessibility checklist (multiple means of representation, action, and engagement), but its real power lies in something L&D professionals rarely exploit: UDL's three principles map almost perfectly onto the cognitive mechanics of how humans actually form new habits and sustain changed behavior. When we design for variability in how people perceive, act, and stay motivated, we're not just removing barriers. We're building the redundancy and reinforcement that behavior change science tells us are required for a new behavior to survive the demands of a stressful, unpredictable workday.
This session moves beyond UDL-as-checklist and into UDL-as-behavior-change-architecture. Drawing on 20+ years of federal government L&D work, Dr. Bill Brantley will walk through a practical framework for mapping UDL guidelines directly onto the stages of behavior change (awareness, trial, adoption, sustainment). Attendees will see real before/after redesigns of training interventions, learn where most behavior-change programs quietly exclude the learners who need them most, and leave with a repeatable model for building training that doesn't just include everyone. It actually changes what everyone does afterward.
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