2.2.5 SOCIAL: Habits

Define the features that characterise habits Critically evaluate the empirical evidence that these features characterise habits Identify ways to break – or overcome – habits. Critically evaluate the extent to which each strategy is effective.

William James (1899) quote

ninety-nine hundredths or, possibly, nine hundred and ninety-nine thousandths of our activity is purely automatic and habitual, from our rising in the morning to our lying down each night.

if habits make up most of our behaviour, why study anything else?

• researchers may be biased towards ‘agentic’ accounts of behaviour- like Mazar and Wood (2022) suggest people are

• people tend to prefet to explain behaviour in a way that gives them agency- give a reason, implying intention choice. yet when investigate in more detail, it is bc the behaviour is habitually done- repeated action

habits: what are they and how do they develop (in brief)

strong associations (in memory) between contexts and responses that have developed through repetition

habits: definition

relatively automatic responses to contexts that are insensitive to changes in the value or contingency of response outcomes

what domain do habits come under?

• not necessarily behavioural- e.g. habitual pessimistic thinking. behavioural but cognition can be habitual too.

what are habits triggered by?

• context

• does not have to be environmental context, can also be internal feeling e.g. when i feel depressed i do x

• trigger associated w behaviour

why do habits build?

• they are functional for us

• behaviour is reinforced due to factors e.g. reward, convenience

what style of response do habits take?

becomes automatic → persist even when no longer rewarding

Verplanken: habits should not be equated with…

frequency of occurence

habits = doing something frequently

yes or no, and why

• no, more than that

• key indicator is how often/ for how long someone does smth, but not enough → is also possible to habitually not do something (as opposed to just not doing smth)

• habits = strong associations in memory between contexts + responses

• there are different routines for activities, e.g. lunches depend on diff settings

evidence that habits are represented