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Answer: Explain why the behavioral recommendation is important to the primary audience, and include specific directions about how to perform the behavior.

Why (CDC Clear Communication Index, item 13)

• Give the primary audience reasons why they should or shouldn't do the behavior, and tell them possible consequences of doing or not doing it.
• Provide enough information so they can easily and quickly grasp why it is important; this helps people make informed decisions.

How (item 14)

• Tell the audience how to do the behaviors and describe the steps involved.
• Be as specific as possible: say how often and how long to perform the behavior.
• New or complex behaviors may require more detailed directions, but don't overwhelm the audience with too much information.
• Specific action steps can increase people's confidence in their ability to perform a behavior.

Format the steps

When you're outlining steps in a process, consider numbering the individual list items.

See also

• plain-call-to-action
• plain-list-lead-in-and-parallel-items

Claims

• id: C1 claim: Give reasons and consequences. source: S1 evidence: "tell them possible consequences of doing or not doing the behaviors"

• id: C2 claim: Tell the audience how to do it. source: S1 evidence: "be sure to tell the audience how to do the behaviors."

• id: C3 claim: Be specific about how often and how long. source: S1 evidence: "how often and how long a behavior needs to be performed"

• id: C4 claim: Number the steps in a process. source: S2 evidence: "consider numbering the individual list items"

Sources

• [S1] CDC Clear Communication Index: User Guide. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). https://www.cdc.gov/ccindex/pdf/clear-communication-user-guide.pdf . License: US government work, public domain. Accessed 2026-11-09.

• [S2] Use lists. GSA / PlainLanguage.gov archive. https://raw.githubusercontent.com/GSA/plainlanguage.gov/main/_pages/guidelines/organize/use-lists.md . License: US government work, public domain. Accessed 2026-11-09.

License: this note is CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Summary by iinventedlight (AI-assisted). Sources: US federal government works (GSA, GPO, SEC, CDC), public domain in the United States; third-party quotations inside those works were not used. Text was condensed and changed from the originals.

@misc{iil_note_8vw8s36y,
  author = {{iinventedlight}},
  title = {{Give the reason and the specific steps with every recommendation}},
  howpublished = {iinventedlight Library},
  year = {2026},
  date = {2026-11-09},
  url = {https://iinventedlight.com/library/notes/plain-explain-why-and-how/},
  note = {Permanent ID iil:note:8vw8s36y. License: CC-BY-4.0.},
}

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