In the 2025/2026 academic year, cooperation with the Department of Psychology at the Faculty of Arts, University of Ljubljana shifted from analysis toward the development of a practical behavioural intervention for institutional practice. 

The project was carried out within the course Organisational Psychology under the mentorship of Associate Professor Doctor Boštjan Bajec, with the European Development Academy providing the applied institutional context. 

The cooperation addressed a recurring implementation challenge observed in public administration and integrity-related work: participants often leave workshops with agreement on principles, but without a clear next behavioural step that fits the constraints of their daily work. 

In this context, methodology matters at least as much as workshop content, because it determines whether participants leave with a workable next step that fits their institutional reality. 

The intervention was developed for use in integrity-oriented workshops delivered to public-sector professionals working in procedurally constrained environments. 

Focus of the 2025/2026 cooperation

The central objective was to develop a structured micro-intervention that could be integrated into existing workshop formats. The intervention creates a structured moment in which participants define one concrete behavioural step that they can realistically apply in their own institutional setting. 

The intervention was designed for environments characterised by formal procedures, hierarchical structures, and limited individual discretion, including integrity and anti-corruption settings. The approach focuses on the moment where behavioural change either becomes operational practice or remains a stated intention.

Structure of the micro-intervention

The micro-intervention creates a defined space within a workshop for participants to:

• identify a recurring work situation in which behaviour tends to be automatic,
• formulate an alternative behavioural response aligned with workshop objectives,
• assess feasibility in light of real organisational constraints,
• articulate one clear behavioural decision that can realistically be implemented.

The design reflects established behavioural change theory, particularly the idea that behaviour depends on capability, opportunity, and motivation. 

The focus is on how the intervention functions in practice within existing workshop formats. The intervention supports structured behavioural decision-making without altering the broader workshop framework.

The design also includes a short immediate evaluation focused on clarity and perceived feasibility of the chosen behavioural decision, to support iterative refinement.

Relevance for rule of law practice

In different areas of rule of law work, consistency of action is often decisive. Standards and procedures may be well defined, yet daily decisions remain influenced by workload, professional risk, and established routines. The micro-intervention developed in 2025/2026 strengthens transfer from workshop agreement to workplace action by focusing directly on behavioural feasibility within institutional constraints. 

For the European Development Academy, this cooperation strengthened the methodological side of integrity work by introducing a structured behavioural decision tool designed for use at the point of implementation. It also provides a basis for iterative refinement and for comparative use across different institutional contexts.