Habit, not conscious choice, drives most of our actions, according to new research from the University of Surrey, University of South Carolina and Central Queensland University.
The research, published in Psychology & Health, found that two-thirds of our daily behaviours are initiated “on autopilot”, out of habit.
Habits are actions that we are automatically prompted to do when we encounter everyday settings, due to associations that we have learned between those settings and our usual responses to them.
The research also found that 46% of behaviours were both triggered by habit and aligned with conscious intentions, suggesting that people form habits that support their personal goals, and often disrupt habits that conflict with them.
While there have been previous attempts to estimate the prevalence of habits in our day-to-day lives, this study used a new method to capture habits in action. The international research team surveyed 105 participants from the UK and Australia, sending six random prompts to their phones each day for a week, asking them to describe what they were currently doing, and whether it was triggered out of habit or done intentionally.
The study found that 65% of daily behaviours were habitually initiated, meaning people were prompted to do them out of routine rather than making a conscious decision.
Professor Benjamin Gardner, Professor in Psychology at the University of Surrey and co-author of the study, said:
“Our research shows that while people may consciously want to do something, the actual initiation and performance of that behaviour is often done without thinking, driven by non-conscious habits. This suggests that “good” habits may be a powerful way to make our goals a reality.
"For people who want to break their bad habits, simply telling them to “try harder” isn't enough. To create lasting change, we must incorporate strategies to help people recognise and disrupt their unwanted habits, and ideally form positive new ones in their place."
The findings may have broader implications for public health and wellness interventions. The researchers recommend that initiatives designed to help people adopt new behaviours, like exercising or eating healthier, should focus on building new, positive habits.
For example, for someone trying to take up exercise, inconsistent exercising may not be enough. The most effective strategy would involve identifying an everyday situation in which exercise can realistically be done – for example, at a certain time of day, or following a regular event, like leaving work – and consistently doing some exercise in that situation.
Likewise, to break a bad habit like smoking, simply wanting to quit may not cut it. The most effective strategies would involve disrupting triggers (e.g. avoiding places where they used to smoke) and creating new routines (e.g. chewing gum after a meal instead of having a cigarette).
Dr Amanda Rebar, Associate Professor at the University of South Carolina and lead author of the study said:
“People like to think of themselves as rational decision makers, who think carefully about what to do before they do it.
“However, much of our repetitive behavior is undertaken with minimal forethought and is instead generated automatically, by habit.”
Dr Grace Vincent, Sleep Scientist and Associate Professor at Central Queensland University and co-author of the study, said the findings offer hope to people trying to develop healthier lifestyles:
“Our study shows that two-thirds of what people do each day is sparked by habit, and most of the time those habits are also aligned with our intentions.
“This means that if we set out to create a positive habit, whether that’s around better sleep hygiene, or nutrition, or general wellbeing improvements, we can rely on an internal “autopilot” to take over and help us maintain those habits.
“Unfortunately, not all habits are created equal. Exercise was the exception in our findings, as it was often triggered by habit, but less likely to be achieved purely “on autopilot”, compared to other behaviours.”
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