An ontological framework for organising and describing behaviours: The Human Behaviour Ontology

Abstract

Background Human behaviours have been classified in areas such as health, occupation and sustainability. We aimed to develop a more broadly applicable framework for behaviours to facilitate integrating evidence across domains. Methods The Human Behaviour Ontology (HBO), a part of the Behaviour Change Intervention Ontology (BCIO), was developed by: (1) specifying the ontology’s scope, (2) identifying candidate classes from existing classifications, (3) refining the ontology by applying it to code behaviours in relevant literature, (4) conducting a stakeholder review with behavioural and ontology experts, (5) testing the inter-rater reliability of its use in annotating research reports, (6) finalising classes and adding relations between classes, and (7) publishing the ontology’s computer-readable version. Results A class labelled ‘individual human behaviour’ was defined as “A bodily process of a human that involves co-ordinated contraction of striated muscles controlled by the brain.” In Steps 1-4, the ontology’s initial version was developed, with 128 classes. The inter-rater reliability for applying this version in annotations was 0.63 for researchers familiar with it and, after minor adjustments to the ontology and annotation guidance, 0.74 for researchers unfamiliar with it. Following Steps 5-6, the ontology was published with 177 classes, including 128 individual human behaviour classes organised under upper-level classes relating to (1) experiences (e.g., playing), (2) expressive (e.g., laughing), (3) harm (e.g., self-injury behaviour), (4) health (e.g., undergoing vaccination), (5) life-function (e.g., breathing behaviour), (6) interacting with materials (e.g., consumption), (7) bodily care (e.g., washing), (8) position (e.g., walking), and (9) social environments (e.g., communication). The remaining 49 classes included: ‘individual human behaviour pattern’ for repeated behaviours, ‘population behaviour’, ‘population behaviour pattern’, behavioural attributes (e.g., impulsiveness), and abstinence from behaviour. Relations were also defined to represent timings, locations, participants, mental processes, functions, goals, and outcomes. Conclusions The HBO potentially provides a coherent framework for describing human behaviours.