tag:theconversation.com,2011:/us/topics/habits-3412/articlesHabits – The Conversation2024-01-03T22:40:45Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2199472024-01-03T22:40:45Z2024-01-03T22:40:45ZThe science behind building healthy habits can help you keep your New Year’s resolution<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/567790/original/file-20240103-17-ggw22c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C6048%2C4010&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Strategies like setting SMART goals and enlisting social support can help turn resolutions into habits.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span></figcaption></figure><iframe style="width: 100%; height: 100px; border: none; position: relative; z-index: 1;" allowtransparency="" allow="clipboard-read; clipboard-write" src="https://narrations.ad-auris.com/widget/the-conversation-canada/the-science-behind-building-healthy-habits-can-help-you-keep-your-new-years-resolution" width="100%" height="400"></iframe>
<p>Every New Year, millions of people make resolutions, with the most common <a href="https://www.forbes.com/health/mind/new-year-resolutions-survey-2024/">resolutions being health-related</a>. Despite their popularity, <a href="https://www.ipsos.com/en-ca/canadians-quick-make-new-years-resolutions-slow-see-them-through">up to 80 per cent of resolutions fail</a>, mostly within a few weeks. As a result, many <a href="https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18063084">people make the same resolutions year after year</a>. </p>
<p>At the same time, resolutions can bring focus to an area that’s important to you. I research the importance of behaviours to health, and write the <a href="https://drscottlear.com/">Become Your Healthiest You</a> blog. Here’s how using scientific strategies can increase your chances of success with your resolution.</p>
<h2>Setting SMART resolutions</h2>
<p>Resolutions are like goals and putting time into planning your resolution can increase your success. Using the SMART goal framework (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Timely) is a good foundation for setting your resolution.</p>
<p>A specific resolution is clear and focused. Unfortunately, <a href="https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18063084">most people set vague resolutions</a>, such as wanting to exercise more, be healthier or lose weight. While admirable, resolutions that provide a clear description of what you want to achieve (exercise three times a week for 30 minutes, lose five pounds) provide more direction and are more readily attained. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A couple in a kitchen setting a bowl of fruit on the table" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/567766/original/file-20240103-23-fxxv3m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/567766/original/file-20240103-23-fxxv3m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/567766/original/file-20240103-23-fxxv3m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/567766/original/file-20240103-23-fxxv3m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/567766/original/file-20240103-23-fxxv3m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/567766/original/file-20240103-23-fxxv3m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/567766/original/file-20240103-23-fxxv3m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A goal of eating healthier is hard to measure, whereas a goal of eating three fruits a day can be easily measured.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Also, aim for positive resolutions such as eating more vegetables, in contrast to eating no junk food. Positive resolutions are approach-oriented, while negative ones are avoidance-oriented. In a survey of 1,066 people, those who had <a href="https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0234097">approach-oriented resolutions were more likely to be successful</a>.</p>
<p>A measurable resolution means you can assess when you’ve achieved it. A goal of eating healthier is hard to measure, whereas a goal of eating three fruits a day can be easily measured. Essentially, your resolution becomes a target. And a target can also bring focus to your resolution, such as with wanting to run a marathon under four hours. In a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2015.2417">study of nearly 10 million marathon times</a> there were far more finishes at 3:59 than at 4:01, which suggests that having a clear target may have helped people run faster.</p>
<p>You also want your resolution to be attainable, which means it’s realistic for you to achieve. Big, long-term resolutions may be more easily approached by breaking them into smaller ones. However, your resolution also needs to be challenging, as <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/0030-5073(68)90004-4">challenging ones result in better performance</a> and are also found to be <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.obhdp.2018.09.002">more satisfying</a> than easier resolutions.</p>
<p>A relevant resolution is one that’s meaningful to you. For example, exercising so you can have more energy throughout the day. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Marathon runners" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/567768/original/file-20240103-25-w31e13.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/567768/original/file-20240103-25-w31e13.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=393&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/567768/original/file-20240103-25-w31e13.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=393&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/567768/original/file-20240103-25-w31e13.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=393&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/567768/original/file-20240103-25-w31e13.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=494&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/567768/original/file-20240103-25-w31e13.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=494&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/567768/original/file-20240103-25-w31e13.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=494&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">In a study of nearly 10 million marathon times, there were far more finishes at 3:59 than at 4:01, which suggests that having a clear target may have helped people run faster.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Pixabay)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Relevant resolutions are more likely to be intrinsic in contrast with extrinsic ones, which are externally motivated (such as getting a promotion, winning a trophy or receiving praise). Extrinsic resolutions tend to be fleeting while intrinsic resolutions are associated with <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.32598/jpcp.8.2.28.2">greater well-being</a> and <a href="https://www.proquest.com/docview/213709669?&sourcetype=Scholarly%20Journals">satisfaction</a>.</p>
<p>The last part is having a resolution that’s timely. This means having a deadline for when you wish to achieve it. A resolution without a deadline rarely gets done. A timely resolution helps prioritize your days and weeks leading up to it. If your resolution is to lose five pounds in two months, this can be the foundation for your plan on how to achieve it.</p>
<h2>Succeeding at your resolution</h2>
<p>Having a good implementation plan is as key as having a clear resolution. In some cases, you may need to change your environment to be more supportive of your resolution. This may mean moving snacks out of sight, putting your workout gear near the front door or using sticky notes as reminders.</p>
<p>If your resolution requires starting a new habit, combine it with a habit you already do. If you want to floss your teeth, combine it with brushing your teeth. Combining a new habit with an old one is referred to as piggybacking, stacking and temptation bundling.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A woman in exercise clothes with a towel around her neck wearing headphones" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/567770/original/file-20240103-15-rhl1zv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/567770/original/file-20240103-15-rhl1zv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/567770/original/file-20240103-15-rhl1zv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/567770/original/file-20240103-15-rhl1zv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/567770/original/file-20240103-15-rhl1zv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/567770/original/file-20240103-15-rhl1zv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/567770/original/file-20240103-15-rhl1zv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Temptation bundling means bundling a newly desired activity with one you already enjoy, like exercising while listening to audiobooks.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Temptation bundling is a more specific version of piggybacking in which you choose an activity you enjoy and bundle it with your newly desired activity. If you want to start exercising, bundle it with a favourite TV show, podcast or music. People who used temptation bundling with audiobooks were <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.obhdp.2020.09.003">more likely to keep up with their exercise routine</a>. </p>
<p>To encourage yourself along the way, try positive thinking. This can be as simple as saying to yourself <em>I can do this</em>, <em>I’m proud of myself for trying</em> or <em>I have the power to change my mind</em> a few times each day. Positive thinking may help <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-014-9593-5">increase perseverance</a> and is believed to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neubiorev.2005.06.001">increase the neurotransmitters dopamine</a> and <a href="https://www.jpn.ca/content/32/6/430">serotonin</a>, associated with pleasure and mood, which can reinforce behaviours.</p>
<p>Enlisting the support of others can also help in achieving your resolution. People with greater social support networks are <a href="https://doi.org/10.2190/78UQ-5NMW-7YLD-TFWV">more likely to achieve their goals</a>. </p>
<p>Social support can be broken into four categories:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>instrumental support consisting of someone doing something for you, such as driving you to the gym or helping in meal planning; </p></li>
<li><p>informational support in the form of someone giving you advice, whether it be from family, friends or professionals such as your doctor or a dietitian; </p></li>
<li><p>appraisal support, including evaluation and constructive feedback, which may come from the same people who provide informational support; and </p></li>
<li><p>emotional support from people providing love, empathy and caring.</p></li>
</ul>
<h2>Challenges and setbacks happen</h2>
<p>Even with proper planning, challenges and setbacks can happen and are a normal part of any process of changing one’s behaviour or attempting something new. </p>
<p>Some setbacks may be temporary, such as an illness interrupting your exercise program. Others may occur regularly, such as dinner parties that may affect your desire to eat a healthy diet. These challenges can be minimized by planning ahead. In this example, your plan may include contributing a meal to the dinner that fits your needs.</p>
<p>If a setback occurs, accept this as a natural part of the process. Focus on the progress you’ve made so far and review your plan. What has worked for you to date? Is there anything you need to revise to account for any future challenges? </p>
<p>Starting a new behaviour can sometimes be a process of trial and error, and learning from setbacks can support future success. Good luck and Happy New Year!</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/219947/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Scott Lear receives funding from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and Hamilton Health Sciences, and has received funding from the Heart and Stroke Foundation, Novo Nordisk, and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.</span></em></p>Resolutions are like goals and putting time into planning your resolution can increase your success. Using scientific strategies can increase your chances of sticking with your resolution.Scott Lear, Professor of Health Sciences, Simon Fraser UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2191982023-12-26T19:41:19Z2023-12-26T19:41:19ZKeeping a streak alive can be strong motivation to stick with a chosen activity<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/566590/original/file-20231219-17-i2u80d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=1379%2C248%2C3881%2C2980&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Neither rain, nor snow, nor sleet, nor hail shall keep a streaker from their self-appointed activity.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/athletic-man-jogging-in-extreme-weather-condition-royalty-free-image/1184153812">janiecbros/E+ via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><a href="https://ftw.usatoday.com/2013/06/alabama-fan-attended-781-consecutive-games-before-passing-away">Dick Coffee</a> attended 781 consecutive University of Alabama football games. <a href="https://www.mensjournal.com/adventure/meg-roh-celebrates-7-years-of-surfing-every-day-by-going-surfing">Meg Roh</a> surfed through illness, storms and nightfall to maintain a seven-year daily surfing streak. <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2022/01/01/sports/running-streak-rise.html">Jon Sutherland</a> ran at least 1 mile every day for over 52 years. </p>
<p>An activity streak has the power to compel behavior, and marketers have taken note. Marketing researchers <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=irJyTtAAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao">Jackie Silverman</a> and <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=Lb3D24EAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao">Alixandra Barasch</a> recently documented 101 unique instances, including Snapchat, Candy Crush Saga, Wordle and the Duolingo language learning platform, of apps that have <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/jcr/ucac029">incorporated streaks into their architecture</a> by tracking the number of consecutive days users complete a task. There are even <a href="https://www.thestreakingapp.com/">apps dedicated solely to tracking streaks</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/566406/original/file-20231218-15-fcjdpq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="statistics for wins and streak with a guess distribution chart" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/566406/original/file-20231218-15-fcjdpq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/566406/original/file-20231218-15-fcjdpq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=310&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566406/original/file-20231218-15-fcjdpq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=310&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566406/original/file-20231218-15-fcjdpq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=310&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566406/original/file-20231218-15-fcjdpq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=389&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566406/original/file-20231218-15-fcjdpq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=389&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566406/original/file-20231218-15-fcjdpq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=389&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">One user’s Wordle streak of more than a month’s worth of wins.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Screenshot from Wordle on New York Times</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>What is it about streaks that makes them so compelling? <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=5yNBAfIAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao">I’m interested in consumer behavior and decision making</a>. For insight into streaks and their motivating influence, I conducted research, recently <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-023-00944-4">published in the Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science</a>, on the phenomenon.</p>
<h2>What is a streak?</h2>
<p>Because there’s no generally accepted definition of what a streak is, I started by trying to define the phenomenon. Based on input from people maintaining streaks and how streaks are described in the popular media, I suggest they have four underlying characteristics.</p>
<p>First, streaks require unchanging performance and temporal parameters. In other words, rules, established by the streaker or others, define what it means to successfully complete the activity and the schedule for doing so. For example, a streak may involve completing a session of 50 pushups every calendar day.</p>
<p>Second, the streak-holder largely attributes completing the activity to his or her resolve.</p>
<p>Third, a streak is a series of the same completed activity that the person maintaining the streak considers to be uninterrupted.</p>
<p>Fourth, the streaker quantifies the series’ duration. For instance, a streak-holder can tell you exactly how many consecutive workdays they’ve biked in to the office, or they can tell you the precise date the streak began.</p>
<p>This definition distinguishes an activity streak from winning streaks and lucky streaks. Unlike activity streaks, winning streaks depend on the performance of others – an opponent – while lucky streaks involve outcomes that are not under the control of the person executing the streak.</p>
<p>My definition also highlights that streaks are perceptual. Some people who have completed an objectively uninterrupted series of an activity may not view that as a streak. Others who have not completed the activity every time the opportunity arises may believe they have a streak.</p>
<h2>Is it a streak, habit or collection?</h2>
<p>People often engage in behavior patterns, or a recurring way of acting in a given situation. A streak is a form of patterned behavior, but there are others. Most people have habits, which are <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1559-1816.1998.tb01681.x">reflexlike and triggered by the context</a>. For example, many people mindlessly fasten their seat belts upon getting in a car.</p>
<p>That automatic aspect sets a habit apart from a streak. A streak often requires the actor to have a strategy for completing the activity <a href="https://doi.org/10.2307/1252098">in various situations or contexts</a>. For example, someone with a streak of running at least 1 mile every calendar day may need to carefully plan a run when traveling across time zones.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/566591/original/file-20231219-27-q90dyb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="man looking anxiously out airplane window" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/566591/original/file-20231219-27-q90dyb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/566591/original/file-20231219-27-q90dyb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566591/original/file-20231219-27-q90dyb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566591/original/file-20231219-27-q90dyb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566591/original/file-20231219-27-q90dyb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566591/original/file-20231219-27-q90dyb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566591/original/file-20231219-27-q90dyb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A streaker can get stressed when circumstances outside their control prevent them from doing the activity.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/scared-male-passenger-looking-out-the-window-of-an-royalty-free-image/1439979538">urbazon/E+ via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>While developing a habit may be appealing because it <a href="https://www.springerprofessional.de/en/customer-inertia-marketing/18347036">minimizes thinking</a>, I discovered that the challenge of finding a way to complete the behavior can motivate many streak-holders.</p>
<p>Failing to perform a habitual behavior on occasion will have little impact on the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-295X.114.4.843">likelihood of the person performing the behavior in the future</a>. Conversely, failing to perform a behavior that is part of a streak ends the streak.</p>
<p>For some people, ending a streak discouraged the behavior in the future: “The streak is over. Why bother?” For others, it hardened their resolve: “The streak is over. I’ve got to start another streak as soon as possible.”</p>
<p><a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/0167-4870(95)98956-X">Creating a collection</a> is another form of patterned behavior. Collections typically involve dissimilar objects connected by a common meaning. For example, Jay Leno is known for his <a href="https://cars.usnews.com/cars-trucks/features/jay-lenos-car-collection">collection of antique and exotic cars</a>. But unlike a streak, a collection does not end if someone fails to add to it every time the opportunity arises. I found that a collection of experiences or stories is often a byproduct of maintaining a streak. </p>
<h2>Why do streaks motivate behavior?</h2>
<p>By tapping into various psychological drivers of behavior, streaks can motivate people in several ways.</p>
<p>In general, a streak adds a higher-level goal (keeping the streak alive) to a lower-level goal (completing an individual activity). Streaks also add structure to an activity, and structure can <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.65.1.113">simplify thinking and decision making</a>. The extent to which goal achievement or structure is important to you would influence your commitment to a streak.</p>
<p>I also found the way a streak is structured can affect the streak-holder’s commitment to it. For example, a streak of meditating at least 20 minutes each day may be more appealing, and lead to more commitment, than a streak of meditating at least 140 minutes each week. While the amount of meditating is the same in both cases, a daily streak adds structure, thus simplifying decision making, and encourages the person to regularly engage in a beneficial behavior.</p>
<p>Streaks can serve to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s12599-013-0273-5">gamify</a> the underlying activity by <a href="https://theconversation.com/gamification-harnesses-the-power-of-games-to-motivate-37320">creating rules and quantifying the outcome</a>, and many people enjoy the challenge of a game.</p>
<p>Finally, I found that activities that are more relevant to one’s identity are more likely to generate commitment to a streak. If someone identifies as religious, a daily streak of praying may be more appealing than a daily streak of playing Wordle because a praying streak can provide a way of demonstrating one’s desired identity to others.</p>
<p>While streaks can compel behavior, they do not motivate all people for all situations. They can even have the opposite effect. Some people are turned off by the prospect of a streak because they’re concerned about being obligated to it, as reflected in the <a href="https://www.runeveryday.com/news/archive/newsletterV17N4.pdf">comments of a former streak runner</a>: “I realized that, if I let it, the streak could become a ‘thing’ that controlled my life, my travel, and those around me.”</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/566593/original/file-20231219-15-e39aqx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="January calendar page with 'Let's go!' sticky note on the first of the month" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/566593/original/file-20231219-15-e39aqx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/566593/original/file-20231219-15-e39aqx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566593/original/file-20231219-15-e39aqx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566593/original/file-20231219-15-e39aqx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566593/original/file-20231219-15-e39aqx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566593/original/file-20231219-15-e39aqx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/566593/original/file-20231219-15-e39aqx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A new page on the calendar can feel like it offers a fresh start.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/calendar-indicating-lets-go-on-1st-january-royalty-free-image/1080219424">Isabel Pavia/Moment via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Streaks and the new year</h2>
<p>As the calendar turns to a new year, many people resolve to engage in self-improving behaviors that facilitate better mental or physical health. People often begin streaks on Jan. 1 or other important dates, such as holidays, birthdays or anniversaries of noteworthy events. Such temporal landmarks add meaning and structure to the streak and create a “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2014.1901">fresh start effect</a>.”</p>
<p>While many people make New Year’s resolutions, <a href="https://fisher.osu.edu/blogs/leadreadtoday/why-most-new-years-resolutions-fail#:%7E:text=Researchers%20suggest%20that%20only%209,fail%20at%20New%20Year's%20resolutions.">only a small percentage of people complete them</a>. My research suggests that structuring a resolution as a streak may be the nudge that some people need to stick with it further into the new year – and maybe far beyond.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/219198/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Danny Weathers does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>A streak can motivate you to keep on keeping on with behaviors ranging from praying to running to sharing pictures on social media. Here’s what goes into making them so compelling.Danny Weathers, Professor of Marketing, Clemson UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2135912023-09-22T11:51:05Z2023-09-22T11:51:05ZSeven tips for using the back-to-school mindset to help you stick to your goals<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/549553/original/file-20230921-28-47ft6g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C5615%2C3732&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The back-to-school period is one of many temporal landmarks you can find throughout the year.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/runner-caucasian-woman-jogging-autumn-park-328341206">chesterf/ Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Even if it’s been many years since you were last in school, you might still associate this time of year with that “back-to-school” mindset – that feeling of a page turning, a new phase beginning and the chance to start anew and reinvent yourself.</p>
<p>While you won’t find any research on the “back-to-school mindset” itself, this feeling is very similar to what science calls the “<a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2014.1901">fresh start effect</a>”. This is a boost in motivation for change that comes with a shift from one time in your life to another – called a temporal landmark. The beginning of a new school year, birthdays, anniversaries and even Monday mornings are all temporal landmarks.</p>
<p>Temporal landmarks support our belief that we can reinvent ourselves, acting as a threshold to a new start and the chance to leave old habits behind. These landmarks <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2014.1901">open our minds up</a> to novelty and the possibility of <a href="https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0133254">seeing the bigger picture</a> – rather than being mired in our daily slog. </p>
<hr>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="Quarter life, a series by The Conversation" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/451343/original/file-20220310-13-1bj6csd.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/451343/original/file-20220310-13-1bj6csd.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/451343/original/file-20220310-13-1bj6csd.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/451343/original/file-20220310-13-1bj6csd.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/451343/original/file-20220310-13-1bj6csd.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/451343/original/file-20220310-13-1bj6csd.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/451343/original/file-20220310-13-1bj6csd.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><em><strong><a href="https://theconversation.com/uk/topics/quarter-life-117947?utm_source=TCUK&utm_medium=linkback&utm_campaign=UK+YP2022&utm_content=InArticleTop">This article is part of Quarter Life</a></strong>, a series about issues affecting those of us in our twenties and thirties. From the challenges of beginning a career and taking care of our mental health, to the excitement of starting a family, adopting a pet or just making friends as an adult. The articles in this series explore the questions and bring answers as we navigate this turbulent period of life.</em></p>
<p><em>You may be interested in:</em></p>
<p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/how-to-motivate-yourself-to-learn-a-language-210341?utm_source=TCUK&utm_medium=linkback&utm_campaign=UK+YP2022&utm_content=InArticleTop">How to motivate yourself to learn a language</a></em></p>
<p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/why-its-so-difficult-to-figure-out-what-to-do-with-your-life-and-three-steps-to-take-209266?utm_source=TCUK&utm_medium=linkback&utm_campaign=UK+YP2022&utm_content=InArticleTop">Why it’s so difficult to figure out what to do with your life – and three steps to take</a></em></p>
<p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/four-ways-to-have-hard-conversations-with-your-friends-without-making-things-worse-207675?utm_source=TCUK&utm_medium=linkback&utm_campaign=UK+YP2022&utm_content=InArticleTop">Four ways to have hard conversations with your friends – without making things worse</a></em></p>
<hr>
<p>New Year’s Eve is our most well-known marker for fresh starts. But as many of us know, new year’s resolutions <a href="https://openventio.org/wp-content/uploads/How-to-Make-Your-New-Year%E2%80%99s-Resolutions-Work-SBRPOJ-4-119.pdf">often don’t work</a> when it comes to making <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/S0899-3289(88)80016-6">lasting lifestyle changes</a>. </p>
<p>This is because resolutions tend to lack specificity, are too ambitious, last too long, or people don’t make necessary changes in their environment to <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/doi/10.1037/0022-3514.88.6.918">support behaviour change</a> (such as finding new hobbies to do on weekends instead of going to the pub if you’re trying to drink less). Feeling you have to make a new year’s resolution can also <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/0306460389900506">lead to failure</a>.</p>
<p>But other temporal landmarks tend to better support changes, not just in ourselves but in our environment too. The new school year, for example, often means a change of routine, but also a change in the clothes we wear and the people we socialise with. All these subtle changes may work together to support your motivation when making a new start.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A group of university students talk with each other about their coursework." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/549554/original/file-20230921-19-ilm2fd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/549554/original/file-20230921-19-ilm2fd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549554/original/file-20230921-19-ilm2fd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549554/original/file-20230921-19-ilm2fd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549554/original/file-20230921-19-ilm2fd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549554/original/file-20230921-19-ilm2fd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549554/original/file-20230921-19-ilm2fd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">We associate the back-to-school period with many changes – including new routines and meeting new people.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/classmate-classroom-sharing-international-friend-concept-408849511">Rawpixel.com/ Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Our brains <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.124.3.423">love novelty</a> and there’s nothing better than a chance to leave behind the “the treadmill of the predictable everyday flow” of our lives and have a new period to look forward to. This makes motivation easier to come by as it offers a chance to <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/cb.2155">change our circumstances</a>.</p>
<p>While this change in routine can be nerve-wracking, it might be the kind of interruption needed to <a href="https://academic.oup.com/jcr/article-abstract/35/4/640/1806395?redirectedFrom=fulltext">shift how we think</a> and visualise how we can achieve our goals. </p>
<p>The back-to-school period offers the perfect chance to kick-start any life changes you’ve been meaning to make. Here are a few ways to make sure your goals don’t fail:</p>
<h2>1. Write to your future self</h2>
<p>Set timers to send yourself aspirational reminders of your goals to <a href="https://yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300262285/nudge/">gently nudge</a> yourself towards achieving your goals. If you’re trying to save more money, for example, setting a reminder to set aside some cash via an email that appears in your inbox on payday may help give you this much-needed nudge. </p>
<h2>2. Don’t worry if you falter</h2>
<p>It can be hard to make big changes and build new habits. Even if you don’t succeed in sticking with your changes at first, there are plenty of other temporal landmarks you can find throughout the year that offer a chance for a fresh start (such as your birthday or returning to work after a holiday). Even the smallest period of change offers a chance to make <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.57.9.677">positive lifestyle changes</a>. </p>
<h2>3. Quick wins</h2>
<p>The motivation and energy provided by a fresh start can often be short-lived. But having <a href="https://doi.org/10.3390/systems8040055">quick-win goals</a> that require only small boosts in motivation are the perfect ones to set for yourself during these transition periods. This can include things such as decluttering your room or deleting your most addictive social media app.</p>
<h2>4. Put your imperfections behind you</h2>
<p>Instead of focusing on who you are now, put your attention on <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/a0030477">the person you want to be</a> – and use this as motivation to make change. Focusing on who you want to be in the future may also help you <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0956797615605818">leave your imperfections in the past</a>.</p>
<h2>5. Set a deadline</h2>
<p>Temporal landmarks are great because they provide natural structure and flow to our lives. Not only can you use temporal landmarks to start working towards a goal, upcoming temporal landmarks can also act as a way of bringing a <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2014.1901">natural urgency</a> to accomplishing our goals.</p>
<h2>6. Avoid the slump</h2>
<p>Motivation fluctuates over time. We usually have high motivation when we first set a goal, and high motivation as we get close to achieving it. But the period in the middle tends to be <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/a0025928">low in motivation</a> – and the longer the period, the harder it is to maintain our resolve. If you want to make the best of the back-to-school mindset, shorten the period of time you want to achieve your goal. This can even be as short as one week or even just one day at a time.</p>
<h2>7. Pair the good with the bad</h2>
<p>“<a href="https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2013.1784">Temptation bundling</a>” is the practise of pairing something you love with something you’re less enthusiastic about (but know you should do). By pairing these behaviours together, it wires them together in your brain – motivating you to keep working on the thing you may not enjoy as much in the future. </p>
<p>Let’s say you want to exercise more often, for example. Saving an episode of your favourite podcast until you workout may help you feel more motivated to exercise, as you’ll now associate the gym with your favourite podcast.</p>
<p>Making any lifestyle change is hard – but the back-to-school mindset that accompanies the transition from summer into autumn offers a great opportunity to make these changes.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/213591/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Trudy Meehan does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The ‘fresh start effect’ explains why the beginning of a new school year often leads to a boost in motivation – even if you aren’t a student.Trudy Meehan, Lecturer, Centre for Positive Psychology and Health, RCSI University of Medicine and Health SciencesLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2096762023-08-01T12:24:47Z2023-08-01T12:24:47ZSocial media can in fact be made better: Research shows it is possible to reward users for sharing accurate information instead of misinformation<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/539382/original/file-20230725-21-80sem1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C5196%2C3461&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">We feel rewarded by reactions to information we share, and that can lead to good and bad habits.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/woman-and-friend-looking-at-mobile-phone-in-mexican-royalty-free-image/638220004">Linka A Odom/DigitalVision via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Is social media designed to <a href="https://mindmatters.ai/2021/06/a-sad-truth-social-media-rewards-us-for-acting-badly/">reward people for acting badly</a>? </p>
<p>The answer is clearly yes, given that the reward structure on social media platforms relies on popularity, as indicated by the number of responses – likes and comments – a post receives from other users. <a href="https://knightcolumbia.org/content/understanding-social-media-recommendation-algorithms">Black-box algorithms</a> then further amplify the spread of posts that have attracted attention. </p>
<p>Sharing widely read content, by itself, isn’t a problem. But it becomes a problem when attention-getting, controversial content is prioritized by design. Given the design of social media sites, users form habits to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/mot0000292">automatically share</a> the most <a href="https://doi.org/10.31219/osf.io/yw5ah">engaging information</a> regardless of its accuracy and potential harm. <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/pop-culture/viral/internet-cant-stop-talking-andrew-tate-tiktok-rcna42744">Offensive statements</a>, <a href="https://mindmatters.ai/2021/06/a-sad-truth-social-media-rewards-us-for-acting-badly/">attacks on out groups</a> and <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/09/technology/podcasts-steve-bannon-war-room-misinformation.html">false news</a> are amplified, and misinformation often spreads <a href="https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aap9559">further and faster than the truth</a>.</p>
<p>We are two <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=swU8IB4AAAAJ&hl=en">social</a> <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=ljLqYGEAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao">psychologists</a> and a <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=asLJ_FEAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao">marketing scholar</a>. Our <a href="https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2216614120">research</a>, presented at the <a href="https://youtu.be/L_YHlpKedk8">2023 Nobel Prize Summit</a>, shows that social media actually has the ability to create user habits to share high-quality content. After a few tweaks to the reward structure of social media platforms, users begin to share information that is accurate and fact-based.</p>
<p>The problem with habit-driven misinformation-sharing is significant. <a href="https://www.socialmediatoday.com/news/internal-research-from-facebook-shows-that-re-shares-can-significantly-ampl/609614/">Facebook’s own research</a> shows that being able to share already shared content with a single click drives misinformation. Thirty-eight percent of views of text misinformation and 65% of views of photographic misinformation come from content that has been reshared twice, meaning a share of a share of a share of an original post. The biggest sources of misinformation, such as Steve Bannon’s <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/09/technology/podcasts-steve-bannon-war-room-misinformation.html">War Room</a>, exploit social media’s popularity optimization to promote controversy and misinformation beyond their immediate audience. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/YBRFQr4Jiuc?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">How social media algorithms drive misinformation.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Re-targeting rewards</h2>
<p>To investigate the effect of a new reward structure, we gave financial rewards to some users for sharing accurate content and not sharing misinformation. These financial rewards simulated the positive social feedback, such as likes, that users typically receive when they share content on platforms. In essence, we created a new reward structure based on accuracy instead of attention. </p>
<p>As on popular social media platforms, participants in our research learned what got rewarded by sharing information and observing the outcome, without being explicitly informed of the rewards beforehand. This means that the intervention did not change the users’ goals, just their online experiences. After the change in reward structure, participants shared significantly more content that was accurate. More remarkably, users continued to share accurate content even after we removed rewards for accuracy in a subsequent round of testing. These results show that users can be given incentives to share accurate information as a matter of habit. </p>
<p>A different group of users received rewards for sharing misinformation and for not sharing accurate content. Surprisingly, their sharing most resembled that of users who shared news as they normally would, without any financial reward. The striking similarity between these groups reveals that social media platforms encourage users to share attention-getting content that engages others at the expense of accuracy and safety. </p>
<h2>Engagement and the bottom line</h2>
<p>Maintaining high levels of user engagement is crucial for the financial model of social media platforms. Attention-getting content keeps users active <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/arcp.1063">on the platforms</a>. This activity provides social media companies with valuable user data for their primary revenue source: targeted advertising.</p>
<p>In practice, social media companies might be concerned that changing user habits could <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/24/technology/facebook-election-misinformation.html">reduce users’ engagement with their platforms</a>. However, our experiments demonstrate that modifying users’ rewards does not reduce overall sharing. Thus, social media companies can build habits to share accurate content without compromising their user base. </p>
<p>Platforms that give incentives for spreading accurate content can foster trust and maintain or potentially increase engagement with social media. In our studies, users expressed concerns about the prevalence of fake content, leading some to reduce their sharing on social platforms. An accuracy-based reward structure could help restore <a href="https://neely.usc.edu/usc-marshalls-neely-center-social-media-index/">waning user confidence</a>.</p>
<h2>Doing right and doing well</h2>
<p>Our approach, using the existing rewards on social media to create incentives for accuracy, tackles misinformation spread without significantly disrupting the sites’ business model. This has the additional advantage of altering <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/JCOM-02-2021-0017">rewards instead of introducing content restrictions</a>, which are often <a href="https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2210666120">controversial</a> and costly in financial and <a href="https://hbr.org/2022/11/content-moderation-is-terrible-by-design">human terms</a>.</p>
<p>Implementing our proposed reward system for news sharing carries minimal costs and can be easily integrated into existing platforms. The key idea is to provide users with rewards in the form of social recognition when they share accurate news content. This can be achieved by introducing response buttons to indicate trust and accuracy. By incorporating social recognition for accurate content, algorithms that amplify popular content can leverage <a href="https://news.mit.edu/2021/crowd-source-fact-checking-0901">crowdsourcing</a> to identify and amplify truthful information.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2022/12/14/americans-differ-by-party-ideology-over-the-impact-of-social-media-on-u-s-democracy/">Both sides of the political aisle</a> now agree that social media has challenges, and our data pinpoints the root of the problem: the design of social media platforms.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/209676/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Fighting misinformation doesn’t have to involve restricting content or dampening people’s enthusiasm for sharing it. The key is turning bad habits into good ones.Ian Anderson, Ph.D. Student in Social Psychology, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and SciencesGizem Ceylan, Postdoctoral Research Associate, School of Management, Yale UniversityWendy Wood, Provost Professor Emeritus of Psychology and Business, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and SciencesLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2052792023-05-22T12:26:28Z2023-05-22T12:26:28ZHow can I make studying a daily habit?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/526342/original/file-20230515-35525-9hwk75.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C5235%2C3330&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The best place to study is in a space with no distractions and plenty of light.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/young-boy-making-notes-while-using-laptop-royalty-free-image/652717373?phrase=child+studying+at+home+in+room&adppopup=true">Hans Neleman/Stone via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><figure class="align-left ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/281719/original/file-20190628-76743-26slbc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/281719/original/file-20190628-76743-26slbc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=293&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/281719/original/file-20190628-76743-26slbc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=293&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/281719/original/file-20190628-76743-26slbc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=293&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/281719/original/file-20190628-76743-26slbc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=368&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/281719/original/file-20190628-76743-26slbc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=368&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/281719/original/file-20190628-76743-26slbc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=368&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/us/topics/curious-kids-us-74795">Curious Kids</a> is a series for children of all ages. If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, send it to <a href="mailto:curiouskidsus@theconversation.com">curiouskidsus@theconversation.com</a>.</em></p>
<hr>
<blockquote>
<p><strong>How can I make studying a daily habit? – Jesni P., age 15, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India</strong></p>
</blockquote>
<hr>
<p>Studying – you know you need to do it, but you just can’t seem to make it a habit. Maybe you forget, become distracted or just don’t want to do it. </p>
<p>Understanding what a habit is, and how it forms, can help you figure out how to study on a daily basis. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/527115/original/file-20230518-15-9hkp7d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Writing on a notepad with his laptop nearby, a teenage boy does his homework." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/527115/original/file-20230518-15-9hkp7d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/527115/original/file-20230518-15-9hkp7d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527115/original/file-20230518-15-9hkp7d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527115/original/file-20230518-15-9hkp7d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527115/original/file-20230518-15-9hkp7d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527115/original/file-20230518-15-9hkp7d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527115/original/file-20230518-15-9hkp7d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Developing good study habits takes anywhere from three weeks to a few months.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/teenage-boy-doing-schoolwork-at-home-royalty-free-image/1339045968?phrase=teenager+studying+in+room&adppopup=true">MoMo Productions/DigitalVision via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>The habit loop</h2>
<p>A habit is a behavior you do regularly or routinely. As a professor who studies how to <a href="https://faculty.utk.edu/Deborah.Reed">help students become better readers and writers</a>, I can tell you that research shows <a href="https://doi.org/10.1186/s41039-020-00127-7">habits have a loop</a>: cue, routine, reward. </p>
<p>Let’s say you have a habit of eating a snack after school. When school is about to end, you start to feel hungry. Dismissal is the cue to get your snack. </p>
<p>Eating the snack is the routine. The reward is that it tastes good and your hunger goes away, which reinforces the habit – and makes you want to repeat the loop again the next day.</p>
<p>Here are the things you need to make a studying loop: </p>
<ol>
<li> A set time to study every day.</li>
<li> A cue to start studying.</li>
<li> An environment that helps you stick to your studying routine.</li>
<li> A reward for studying.</li>
</ol>
<h2>Setting a time</h2>
<p>When you do things at the same time every day, it is easier to remember to do them. </p>
<p>To determine how much time you should set aside each day to study, <a href="https://www.wgu.edu/heyteach/article/should-students-have-homework1808.html#:%7E">multiply your grade level by 10 minutes</a>. </p>
<p>That means if you’re in third grade, you would plan to spend about 30 minutes per day studying. This can include the time you spend practicing your reading. If you’re in eighth grade, you would spend 80 minutes per day – that is, one hour and 20 minutes – studying. </p>
<p>Research suggests that two hours is the <a href="https://ed.stanford.edu/news/more-two-hours-homework-may-be-counterproductive-research-suggests">maximum amount of daily studying time that is beneficial</a>. Spending more time than that on a regular basis can cause stress, anxiety and possibly disturb healthy sleep habits. </p>
<p>So choose a single block of time during the afternoon or evening when you will have the right amount of time to study every day. </p>
<p>There may be days when your assignments do not fill the full block of time that you have set. On those days, you should spend time reviewing material that you’ve already studied; regularly going back over information <a href="https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2018.02517">helps you remember it</a> and think about how to integrate it with the new things you’re learning. </p>
<p>You also can spend those extra minutes reading a book. Studies show a daily habit of reading for 20 minutes will improve your <a href="https://basmo.app/reading-20-minutes-a-day/">vocabulary, language skills and overall knowledge</a>. </p>
<h2>The cue</h2>
<p>Studying at the same time every day is one cue, but you may need something more concrete when first forming your habit. </p>
<p>This can be a calendar reminder you set on your phone or laptop, or something as simple as a card with the word “study” printed on the front. You can leave the card where you hang up your coat or put down your bag when you get home from school – or on your television or computer screen.</p>
<p>On the back of the card, write the word “studying.” Then keep this side facing up and posted to the back of your computer, on your door, or above your desk while you work. </p>
<p>This will signal to others that they should not disturb you during this time. When you finish studying, return the card to its starting spot so that it’s ready to remind you to study the next day.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/527117/original/file-20230518-19-t5c79l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A teenage girl, relaxed, wearing jeans, and with feet up on her desk, reads a book." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/527117/original/file-20230518-19-t5c79l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/527117/original/file-20230518-19-t5c79l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527117/original/file-20230518-19-t5c79l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527117/original/file-20230518-19-t5c79l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527117/original/file-20230518-19-t5c79l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527117/original/file-20230518-19-t5c79l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527117/original/file-20230518-19-t5c79l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Along with your assignments, it’s good to read for at least 20 minutes a day.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/pretty-blonde-teenage-girl-in-home-clothes-reading-royalty-free-image/1333902073?phrase=teenage%2Bgirl%2Breading%2Ba%2Bbook%2Bin%2Broom%2Bat%2Bdesk">Tatiana Buzmakova/iStock via Getty Images Plus</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Your study environment</h2>
<p>To help yourself study, you need a place set up for work and not for doing other things. Do not study on your bed – that’s for sleeping – or in front of the television, or anywhere it’s difficult to hold and use the materials you need. Best option: a table or desk with good lighting.</p>
<p>Your study place should limit distractions. That includes other people’s conversations and all media: <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/03634523.2013.767917">TV, video games, social media, texts or music</a>. Research repeatedly has shown the human brain cannot multitask well; people make more mistakes <a href="https://health.clevelandclinic.org/science-clear-multitasking-doesnt-work/">if they try to do two things at the same time</a>, especially when one of those things requires concentration. Bouncing back and forth between two things also means it takes longer to complete the task. </p>
<p>Although you should put away electronic devices when studying, that may not be an option if you need them for homework. If that’s the case, set the “do not disturb” notification on your phone, silence incoming notifications and close all social media and gaming apps. </p>
<p>Gaming, social media and video apps are programmed to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/jaoc.12116">make you want to keep checking or playing them</a>. That means you have to replace the bad habit of constantly using them with the good habit of studying for a designated block of time. </p>
<h2>The reward</h2>
<p>That said, after you finish studying, you can give yourself a little gaming or social media time as your reward. </p>
<p>With time, the studying itself will become its own reward. Improving your knowledge and skills will give you a <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/tracybrower/2021/10/17/learning-is-a-sure-path-to-happiness-science-proves-it/?sh=173eccd0768e">sense of achievement</a> and make you more confident and happier at school. But while forming your study habit, a really fun reward will help you stick with it. </p>
<p>This is especially true if the subject you’re studying is difficult for you. No one likes to do something they think they’re not very good at. However, it’s impossible to get better if you do not practice, and studying is just like practicing a sport, instrument or hobby. </p>
<h2>How long it takes</h2>
<p>The amount of time it takes to make studying a daily habit can be anywhere from <a href="https://doi.org/10.3399%2Fbjgp12X659466">21 days to a few months</a>, depending upon the person. </p>
<p>To help you stay with it, find a study buddy to form the habit along with you. Ask your family not to interrupt you during study time. And <a href="https://my-little-studyblr.tumblr.com/post/133682820957/studyhabit-apps">consider using apps</a> to set goals and track your study time so you can watch your habit form and celebrate your progress. The good news: Daily studying gets easier the more you do it.</p>
<hr>
<p><em>Hello, curious kids! Do you have a question you’d like an expert to answer? Ask an adult to send your question to <a href="mailto:curiouskidsus@theconversation.com">CuriousKidsUS@theconversation.com</a>. Please tell us your name, age and the city where you live.</em></p>
<p><em>And since curiosity has no age limit – adults, let us know what you’re wondering, too. We won’t be able to answer every question, but we will do our best.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/205279/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Deborah Reed receives funding from the Tennessee Depart of Education (Contract #33101-21217331051AF3) and the Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education, through Grant #R324A220269 to the University of Tennessee. The opinions expressed are those of the authors and do not represent views of the Tennessee Department of Education, the Institute of Education Sciences, or the U.S. Department of Education.</span></em></p>A researcher who studies ways to help students become better readers and writers describes how to create a homework habit using a loop: cue, routine, reward.Deborah Reed, Professor of Education, University of TennesseeLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2013792023-04-17T04:46:38Z2023-04-17T04:46:38ZWe make thousands of unconscious decisions every day. Here’s how your brain copes with that<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/517593/original/file-20230327-20-xu864f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=204%2C150%2C3389%2C2236&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">agsandrew/Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Do you remember learning to drive a car? You probably fumbled around for the controls, checked every mirror multiple times, made sure your foot was on the brake pedal, then ever-so-slowly rolled your car forward. </p>
<p>Fast forward to now and you’re probably driving places and thinking, “how did I even get here? I don’t remember the drive”. The task of driving, which used to take a lot of mental energy and concentration, has now become subconscious, automatic – habitual.</p>
<p>But how – and why – do you go from concentrating on a task to making it automatic?</p>
<h2>Habits are there to help us cope</h2>
<p>We live in a vibrant, complex and transient world where we constantly face a barrage of information competing for our attention. For example, our eyes take in <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1564115/">over one megabyte of data every second</a>. That’s equivalent to reading 500 pages of information or an entire encyclopedia every minute.</p>
<p>Just one whiff of a <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12744840/">familiar smell</a> can trigger a memory from childhood in less than a millisecond, and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neubiorev.2009.08.004">our skin</a> contains up to 4 million receptors that provide us with important information about temperature, pressure, texture, and pain.</p>
<p>And if that wasn’t enough data to process, <a href="https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/REPS-10-2018-011/full/html">we make thousands of decisions</a> every single day. Many of them are unconscious and/or minor, such as putting seasoning on your food, picking a pair of shoes to wear, choosing which street to walk down, and so on.</p>
<p>Some people are neurodiverse, and the ways we sense and process the world differ. But generally speaking, because we simply cannot process <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1364661305001178">all the incoming data</a>, our brains create habits – automations of the behaviours and actions we often repeat.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/neurodiversity-can-be-a-workplace-strength-if-we-make-room-for-it-164859">Neurodiversity can be a workplace strength, if we make room for it</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Two brain systems</h2>
<p>There are two forces that govern our behaviour: intention and habit. In simple terms, our brain has <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/17437199.2016.1244647">dual processing systems</a>, sort of like a computer with two processors.</p>
<p>Performing a behaviour for the first time requires intention, attention and planning – even if plans are made only moments before the action is performed. </p>
<p>This happens in our prefrontal cortex. More than any other part of the brain, the prefrontal cortex is responsible for making deliberate and logical decisions. It’s the key to reasoning, problem-solving, comprehension, impulse control and perseverance. It affects behaviour via <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/abs/handbook-of-behavior-change/changing-behavior-using-the-reflectiveimpulsive-model/A35DBA6BF0E784F491E936F2BE910FF7">goal-driven decisions</a>.</p>
<p>For example, you use your “reflective” system (intention) to make yourself go to bed on time because sleep is important, or to move your body because you’ll feel great afterwards. When you are learning a new skill or acquiring new knowledge, you will draw heavily on the reflective brain system to form new memory connections in the brain. This system requires mental energy and effort.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/heres-what-happens-in-your-brain-when-youre-trying-to-make-or-break-a-habit-201189">Here's what happens in your brain when you're trying to make or break a habit</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>From impulse to habit</h2>
<p>On the other hand, your “impulsive” (habit) system is in your brain’s <a href="https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/10.1146/annurev.neuro.29.051605.112851">basal ganglia</a>, which plays a key role in the development of emotions, memories, and pattern recognition. It’s impetuous, spontaneous, and pleasure seeking.</p>
<p>For example, your impulsive system might influence you to pick up greasy takeaway on the way home from a hard day at work, even though there’s a home-cooked meal waiting for you. Or it might prompt you to spontaneously buy a new, expensive television. This system requires no energy or cognitive effort as it operates reflexively, subconsciously and automatically. </p>
<p>When we repeat a behaviour in a consistent context, our brain recognises the patterns and moves the control of that behaviour from intention to habit. A habit occurs when your impulse towards doing something is automatically initiated because you encounter a setting in which you’ve done the same thing <a href="https://bmcpsychology.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s40359-015-0065-4">in the past</a>. For example, getting your favourite takeaway because you walk past the food joint on the way home from work every night – and it’s delicious every time, giving you a pleasurable reward.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/517606/original/file-20230327-28-ant9ns.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A row of fried noodle dishes with a person filling up a foil container in the foreground" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/517606/original/file-20230327-28-ant9ns.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/517606/original/file-20230327-28-ant9ns.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/517606/original/file-20230327-28-ant9ns.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/517606/original/file-20230327-28-ant9ns.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/517606/original/file-20230327-28-ant9ns.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/517606/original/file-20230327-28-ant9ns.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/517606/original/file-20230327-28-ant9ns.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Before you know it, picking up a delicious takeaway on your way home can become a regular habit.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://unsplash.com/photos/mdWyghy08vg">James Sutton/Unsplash</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Shortcuts of the mind</h2>
<p>Because habits sit in the impulsive part of our brain, they <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biopsych.2019.03.978">don’t require much cognitive input or mental energy</a> to be performed. </p>
<p>In other words, habits are the mind’s shortcuts, allowing us to successfully engage in our daily life while reserving our reasoning and executive functioning capacities for other thoughts and actions. </p>
<p>Your brain remembers how to drive a car because it’s something you’ve done many times before. Forming habits is, therefore, a natural process that contributes to <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/doiLanding?doi=10.1037%2F0033-2909.124.1.54">energy preservation</a>.</p>
<p>That way, your brain doesn’t have to consciously think about your every move and is free to consider other things – like what to make for dinner, or where to go on your next holiday.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/what-shall-we-have-for-dinner-choice-overload-is-a-real-problem-but-these-tips-will-make-your-life-easier-193317">'What shall we have for dinner?' Choice overload is a real problem, but these tips will make your life easier</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/201379/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Gina Cleo does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>There’s so much to process in our daily lives, we need habits to get us through and give the brain a break.Gina Cleo, Assistant Professor of Habit Change, Bond UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2002282023-03-19T11:51:51Z2023-03-19T11:51:51Z3 ways to unlock the power of food to promote heart health<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/515920/original/file-20230316-2393-gn90tf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=172%2C111%2C5146%2C3700&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Heart-healthy approaches to eating include the Mediterranean diet, the DASH diet and the Portfolio diet.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Your diet — the foods and drinks you eat, not short-term restrictive programs — can impact your heart disease risk. Evidence-based approaches to eating are used by dietitians and physicians to prevent and treat cardiovascular (heart) disease. </p>
<p>National Nutrition Month, with its 2023 theme of <a href="https://www.dietitians.ca/Advocacy/Nutrition-Month/Nutrition-Month-2023?lang=en-CA">Unlock the Potential of Food</a>, is an ideal opportunity to learn more about these approaches and adopt more heart-friendly behaviours.</p>
<p>The <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cjca.2016.07.510">Canadian Cardiovascular Society (CCS) Clinical Practice Guidelines</a> recommend three main dietary patterns for lowering heart disease risk: the Mediterranean Diet, Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) and the Portfolio Diet.</p>
<ol>
<li><p><strong>The Mediterranean Diet</strong> is rich in colourful vegetables and fruits, whole grains, legumes, nuts, olive oil and seafood. Research studies have shown that this diet <a href="https://doi.org/10.1056/nejmoa1800389">reduces risk of having a heart attack or stroke</a>, even <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/s0140-6736(22)00122-2">if you already have heart disease</a>, and provides several other health benefits. <a href="https://www.dietitians.ca/DietitiansOfCanada/media/Documents/Mediterranean%20Diet%20Toolkit/Mediterranean-Diet-Toolkit-A-Guide-to-Healthy-Eating-(handout).pdf">Dietitians of Canada has created a resource</a> that summarizes the details of this approach to eating. </p></li>
<li><p><strong>The DASH Diet</strong> focuses on eating plenty of vegetables, fruit, low-fat dairy, whole grains and nuts, while limiting red and processed meats, foods with added sugar, and sodium. <a href="https://doi.org/10.3390/nu11020338">Originally developed to treat high blood pressure</a>, this diet can also lower low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C — the unhealthy type of cholesterol) and provides several other health benefits. <a href="https://www.heartandstroke.ca/healthy-living/healthy-eating/dash-diet">Heart & Stroke has several resources</a> on this approach to eating. </p></li>
<li><p><strong>The Portfolio Diet</strong> was originally developed in Canada to treat high cholesterol. It emphasises plant proteins (for example, soy and other legumes); nuts; viscous (or “sticky”) fibre sources such as oats, barley and psyllium; plant sterols; and healthy oils like olive oil, canola oil and avocado. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pcad.2018.05.004">Many research studies</a> have shown that this diet can lower LDL-C, and provides several other health benefits. Research shows that <a href="https://doi.org/10.1161/jaha.121.021515">even small additions of Portfolio Diet heart-healthy foods</a> can make a difference; the more you consume of these recommended foods, the greater your reductions in LDL-C and heart disease risk. The <a href="https://ccs.ca/app/uploads/2020/11/Portfolio_Diet_Scroll_editable_eng.pdf">Canadian Cardiovascular Society has an infographic</a> on how to follow the Portfolio Diet. </p></li>
</ol>
<p>A common theme among these three approaches to eating is that they are all considered plant-based, and small changes can make a difference in your overall heart disease risk. “Plant based” does not necessarily mean you have to be 100 per cent vegan or vegetarian to get their benefits. Plant-based diets can range from entirely vegan to diets that include small to moderate amounts of animal products.</p>
<p>Knowledge of healthy eating approaches is key, but behaviours unlock the power of food. Below are three strategies to use to apply the potential of food to promote heart health. They show that by combining the power of nutrition and psychology, you can <a href="https://www.newharbinger.com/9781684033331/healthy-habits-suck/">improve your chances of making long-term changes</a>.</p>
<p>You don’t need to do this alone. We recommend requesting a referral from your physician (this helps with getting the appointment covered by your insurance) to work with a registered dietitian and/or psychologist (behaviourist) to co-create your own ways to unlock the potential of food. </p>
<h2>3 ways to unlock the power of food</h2>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A woman in a white coat holding an apple, with a bowl of fresh produce on her desk, consulting with a woman who has her back to the camera" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/516092/original/file-20230317-4846-oh3wlb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/516092/original/file-20230317-4846-oh3wlb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/516092/original/file-20230317-4846-oh3wlb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/516092/original/file-20230317-4846-oh3wlb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/516092/original/file-20230317-4846-oh3wlb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/516092/original/file-20230317-4846-oh3wlb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/516092/original/file-20230317-4846-oh3wlb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Working with a registered dietitian or psychologist (behaviourist) can help you create a personalized plan to unlock the potential of food. A physician’s referral can help with getting the appointment covered by insurance.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>1. Master and conquer the 90 per cent goal</h2>
<p>Pick a goal you’re 90 per cent sure you can succeed at, while creating a plan to meet larger and harder goals in the future. This approach will help you build confidence in your skills and give you valuable information about what does and does not work for you.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.newharbinger.com/9781608824342/the-abcs-of-human-behavior/">Research shows</a> starting with 90 per cent goals makes it more likely we meet future goals. A 90 per cent goal could be swapping out animal protein for plant protein — such as tofu or beans — at lunch on Mondays (<a href="https://www.mondaycampaigns.org/meatless-monday">Meatless Mondays</a>). Another example: use a meal delivery service that provides measured ingredients with plant-based recipes on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, so you can get some new ideas about how to incorporate more plants into your meals.</p>
<h2>2. Why eliminate and restrict, when you can substitute?</h2>
<p>Pick a “do instead” goal or work with a registered dietitian to substitute healthier choices for your current foods and drinks. Avoid setting goals that may <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eatbeh.2010.03.001">make you focus MORE on the foods you’re trying to avoid</a> (for example, “stop eating sugar”).</p>
<p>Instead, the substitution approach can include things like choosing lower-sodium soup or purchasing pre-cut vegetables with the aim of reducing your starch portion at meals by half. <a href="https://food-guide.canada.ca/en/tips-for-healthy-eating/make-healthy-meals-with-the-eat-well-plate/">Canada’s Food Guide</a>, <a href="https://www.diabetes.ca/resources/tools---resources/basic-meal-planning">Diabetes Canada</a> and <a href="https://www.heartandstroke.ca/-/media/pdf-files/what-we-do/publications/living-well-with-heart-disease/chapter-3.ashx?rev=bae93023086643e8873730f4bd29b946">Heart & Stroke</a> recommend that half your plate be vegetables.</p>
<h2>3. Set value-based goals</h2>
<p>Connect your goal to something that deeply matters to you. While long-term outcomes (such as heart disease) may be the impetus for change, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780197550076.013.18">research shows that things that matter to us right now motivate us most</a>. Picking personal and meaningful reasons for change will help with sustained change.</p>
<p>For example, choose to cook one meal that incorporates a vegetable with a close friend or family member, so you can share the experience and spend time together. This example may be rooted in the following values: kindness, relational values, cultural values, empathy, courage.</p>
<h2>Unlock the power of food</h2>
<p><a href="https://obesitycanada.ca/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/10-Psych-Interventions-2-v7-with-links-1.pdf">Research shows</a> a key to changing diet is focusing on changing eating habits and food behaviours, one at a time. The support of a nutrition professional, such as a registered dietitian and/or a psychologist, can help you make informed choices and plans, tailored to your unique needs, situation, preferences, traditions, abilities and capacity.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/200228/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Shannan M. Grant has received funding from Diabetes Canada, Dietitians of Canada and currently holds funding from Medavie, Tri-Council Funding Programs, Canadian Foundation for Dietetic Research, IWK Health, Mount Saint Vincent University. She is affiliated with Mount Saint Vincent University, IWK Health, Dalhousie University, Dietitians of Canada, Diabetes Canada, People in Pain (PIPN), and Dr. Dayna Lee-Baggley and Associates.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Andrea J. Glenn receives postdoctoral research funding from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR). She has received honoraria from the Soy Nutrition Institute (2020) and the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (2022). </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Dayna Lee-Baggley, Ph.D, Registered Psychologist owns shares in Dr. Lee-Baggley and Associates. She has received funding in the past from the Kidney Foundation of Canada (research grant), QEII Foundation (research grant), CIHR (research grant), SSHRC (research grant) and honoraria/speaking fees from Tobacco Free Nova Scotia, Bausch Health, and Novo Nordisk. She receives royalties from New Harbinger. </span></em></p>Research shows the key to changing your diet is focusing on changing eating habits and food behaviours, one at a time.Shannan M. Grant, Associate Professor, Registered Dietitian, Department of Applied Human Nutrition, Mount Saint Vincent UniversityAndrea J. Glenn, Postdoctoral research fellow, Department of Nutrition, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Harvard UniversityDayna Lee-Baggley, Adjunct professor, Department of Family Medicine & Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Dalhousie UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2011892023-03-14T22:40:50Z2023-03-14T22:40:50ZHere’s what happens in your brain when you’re trying to make or break a habit<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/515047/original/file-20230314-20-mkyscz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=42%2C138%2C3983%2C2553&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://unsplash.com/photos/L57L1mlKoM8">Antonio Feregrino/Unsplash</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Did you set a New Year’s resolution to kick a bad habit, only to find yourself falling back into old patterns? You’re not alone. In fact, research suggests up to <a href="https://doi.apa.org/doiLanding?doi=10.1037/0022-3514.83.6.1281">40% of our daily actions are habits</a> – automatic routines we do without thinking. But how do these habits form, and why are they so difficult to break?</p>
<p>Habits can be likened to riverbeds. A well-established river has a deep bed and water is likely to consistently flow in that direction. A new river has a shallow bed, so the flow of water is not well defined – it can vary course and be less predictable.</p>
<p>Just like water down a riverbed, habits help our behaviour “flow” down a predictable route. But what we are really talking about here is learning and unlearning.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/making-new-years-resolutions-personal-could-actually-make-them-stick-106780">Making New Year's resolutions personal could actually make them stick</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>What happens in the brain when we form a habit?</h2>
<p><a href="https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-psych-122414-033417">During the early stages of habit formation</a>, the decision parts of your brain (pre-frontal cortices) are activated, and the action is very deliberate (instead of hitting snooze you make the <em>choice</em> to get out of bed). When a new routine is initiated, brain circuits – also called neural networks – are activated.</p>
<p>The more often you repeat the new action, the stronger and more efficient these neural networks become. This reorganising and strengthening of connections between neurons is called neuroplasticity, and in the case of building habits – <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long-term_potentiation">long-term potentiation</a>. Each time you perform the new action while trying to form a habit, you need smaller cues or triggers to activate the same network of brain cells.</p>
<p><a href="https://oce.ovid.com/article/00006832-200710000-00001/HTML">Habits strengthen over time</a> as we form associations and earn rewards – for example, not hitting snooze makes getting to work on time easier, so you feel the benefits of your new habit.</p>
<p>Later, as habits strengthen, the decision parts of the brain no longer need to kick in to initiate the action. The habit is now activated in memory and considered automatic: the neural circuits can perform the habit without conscious thought. In other words, you don’t need to <em>choose</em> to perform the action any more.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/515031/original/file-20230313-24-vq8w2j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A hand of a sleeping person hovering over the alarm button on a phone next to their bed" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/515031/original/file-20230313-24-vq8w2j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/515031/original/file-20230313-24-vq8w2j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/515031/original/file-20230313-24-vq8w2j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/515031/original/file-20230313-24-vq8w2j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/515031/original/file-20230313-24-vq8w2j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/515031/original/file-20230313-24-vq8w2j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/515031/original/file-20230313-24-vq8w2j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">If snoozing your phone in the morning feels like an automatic action, that’s because it is. To unlearn the habit, you need to consciously change your behaviour, and do it consistently.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">DGLimages/Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>How long does it really take to form a habit?</h2>
<p>Popular media and lifestyle advice from social media influencers often suggest it takes 21 days to make or break a habit – an idea <a href="https://books.google.com.au/books/about/Psycho_Cybernetics.html?id=J8dqtO6XqPMC&redir_esc=y">originally presented in the 1960s</a>. This is generally considered an oversimplification, though empirical evidence is surprisingly sparse.</p>
<p>A seminal study published in the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/ejsp.674">European Journal of Social Psychology</a> is often cited as showing habits take anywhere from 18 to 254 days to form, with an average of about 66 days.</p>
<p>In that study, 96 people were asked to choose a new health habit and practice it daily for 84 days. Of the original 96 participants, 39 (41%) successfully formed the habit by the end of the study period. The level of success in forming a habit, and the length of time to form the habit, appeared to vary based on the type of goal.</p>
<p>For example, goals related to drinking a daily glass of water were more likely to be successful, and be performed without conscious thought faster than goals related to eating fruit or exercising. Furthermore, the time of day appeared important, with habits cued earlier in the day becoming automatic more quickly than those cued later in the day (for example, eating a piece of fruit with lunch versus in the evening, and walking after breakfast versus walking after dinner).</p>
<p>The study was fairly small, so these findings aren’t definitive. However, they suggest that if you haven’t been able to embed a new habit in just 21 days, don’t fret – there’s still hope!</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/515035/original/file-20230313-2516-yuwo9e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="An older man standing on one leg in a park doing yoga while a younger woman in athletic wear guides him" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/515035/original/file-20230313-2516-yuwo9e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/515035/original/file-20230313-2516-yuwo9e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=416&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/515035/original/file-20230313-2516-yuwo9e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=416&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/515035/original/file-20230313-2516-yuwo9e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=416&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/515035/original/file-20230313-2516-yuwo9e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=523&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/515035/original/file-20230313-2516-yuwo9e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=523&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/515035/original/file-20230313-2516-yuwo9e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=523&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">It may take longer than 21 days to establish your new exercise routine – what’s important is to keep it up until your brain forges those new connections.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Verin/Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>What about breaking unwanted habits?</h2>
<p>Most of us will also have habits we don’t like – unwanted behaviours. Within the brain, breaking unwanted habits is associated with a different form of neuroplasticity, called <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long-term_depression">long-term depression</a> (not to be confused with the mental health condition).</p>
<p>Instead of strengthening neural connections, long-term depression is the process of weakening them. So, how do you silence two neurons that previously have been firing closely together?</p>
<p>One popular approach to <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17437199.2011.603640">breaking a bad habit</a> is pinpointing the specific cue or trigger that prompts the behaviour, and the reward that reinforces the habit.</p>
<p>For example, someone might bite their nails when feeling stressed, and the reward is a temporary feeling of distraction, or sensory stimulation. Once the person has identified this connection, they can try to experiment with disrupting it. For example, by using a bitter nail polish, and focusing on deep breathing exercises when feeling stressed. Once disrupted, over time the old behaviour of biting their nails can gradually fade. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/want-to-quit-a-bad-habit-heres-one-way-to-compare-treatments-109144">Want to quit a bad habit? Here's one way to compare treatments</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Tips on how to form or break a habit</h2>
<p>To break a habit:</p>
<ul>
<li><strong>identify your triggers</strong>, and then avoid or modify them</li>
<li><strong>find a substitute</strong>: try replacing the old habit with a new and healthier one</li>
<li><strong>practise self-compassion</strong>: setbacks are a natural part of the process. Recommit to your goal and carry on.</li>
</ul>
<p>To form a habit:</p>
<ul>
<li><strong>start small</strong>: begin with a simple and achievable habit that you can easily integrate into your daily routine</li>
<li><strong>be consistent</strong>: repeat the habit consistently until it becomes automatic</li>
<li><strong>reward yourself</strong> along the way to stay motivated.</li>
</ul>
<p>If you think of habits like that riverbed, what deepens a river is the volume of water flowing through. With behaviour, that means repetition and similarity in repetition: practising your new habit. Because new habits might be overwhelming, practising in small chunks can help – so that you are not creating a new riverbed, but maybe just deepening parts of the main stream.</p>
<p><a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/jcpp.12811">Finding meaning</a> in the new habit is critical. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2022.107373">Some studies</a> have reported strong findings that the <em>belief</em> you can change a habit is also critical. Believing in change and being aware of its potential, along with your commitment to practice, is key.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/why-some-people-find-it-easier-to-stick-to-new-habits-they-formed-during-lockdown-149438">Why some people find it easier to stick to new habits they formed during lockdown</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/201189/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Dr Ashleigh Elizabeth Smith receives funding from the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC), the Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF) and Dementia Australia. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Carol Maher receives funding from the Medical Research Future Fund, the National Health and Medical Research Council, the National Heart Foundation, the SA Department for Education, the SA Department for Innovation and Skills, Healthway, Hunter New England Local Health District, the Central Adelaide Local Health Network, and LeapForward.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Susan Hillier receives funding from the National Health and Medical Research Fund (NHMRC) and the Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF). </span></em></p>Understanding what the brain does when you’re trying to change your behaviour can help you stick with new habits – or kick old ones to the kerb.Ashleigh E. Smith, Senior Lecturer - Exercise Physiology, University of South AustraliaCarol Maher, Professor, Medical Research Future Fund Emerging Leader, University of South AustraliaSusan Hillier, Professor: Neuroscience and Rehabilitation, University of South AustraliaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1973272023-01-19T12:08:52Z2023-01-19T12:08:52ZWatching your weight? You may only need to make small changes to your daily routine<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/504414/original/file-20230113-12-6pxn1f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C6381%2C4241&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">An extra 10-20 minutes of walking each day can really make a difference.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/two-young-women-walking-while-using-1390862465">Ground Picture/ Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Losing weight is one of the <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0234097&utm_source=npr_newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_content=20201229&utm_term=5066713&utm_campaign=money&utm_id=56209642&orgid=671">most popular new year’s resolutions</a>, yet it is one which most of us struggle to achieve. By the time the second or third week of January rolls around, many of us are finding it harder to stick with the lifestyle changes needed to lose, or at least maintain, our weight. </p>
<p>But one strategy that may work better when it comes to managing our weight is the “small change approach”. This starts with the understanding that for the long haul, it might be best to start small.</p>
<h2>Large changes can be hard to sustain</h2>
<p>Most people who are watching their weight tend to start by making large changes to their diet or physical activity habits. But large changes can be <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/17437199.2017.1299583">difficult to sustain over time</a> because they require high levels of motivation. Since motivation naturally <a href="https://bpspsychub.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1348/000709900158281">rises and falls</a>, it’s no wonder these big lifestyle changes can be so hard to sustain.</p>
<p>This is where the small change approach could be useful.</p>
<p>This weight management strategy recommends that people should decrease the calories they eat and/or increase the calories they burn by <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/23669083_Can_a_small-changes_approach_help_address_the_obesity_epidemic_A_report_of_the_Joint_Task_Force_of_the_American_Society_for_Nutrition_Institute_of_Food_Technologists_and_International_Food_Information#:%7E:text=Small%20changes%20are%20more%20feasible%20to%20achieve%20and,better%20than%20larger%20ones%20that%20cannot%20be%20sustained.">just 100-200 each day</a>. To put that into perspective, that could mean eating just one or two fewer chocolate biscuits or walking for an extra 10-20 minutes each day. </p>
<p>It’s likely you will only need to make minor changes to your current behaviour to eat 100-200 calories less or burn 100-200 calories more each day. These small changes might be easier to fit into your everyday life and, unlike larger changes, will not require additional time and effort outside your normal routine.</p>
<p>A small change approach is also more flexible, as there are several different ways you could decrease the calories you eat and/or increase the calories you burn by 100-200 each day. This flexibility might help to keep you engaged with the approach for longer. </p>
<p>And research shows that when it comes to health, <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3505409/">making small changes</a> to your usual habits may be more effective. We’re also less likely to fail when making small changes, which may help motivate us to make bigger ones over time.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/ten-small-changes-you-can-make-today-to-prevent-weight-gain-167668">Ten small changes you can make today to prevent weight gain</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>According to previous research our team has conducted, the small change approach can indeed be an effective strategy for <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/obr.13357">helping people manage their weight</a>. Our study combined the results of 21 trials which used the small change approach for weight management. We found that adults who used the approach gained around one kilogram less over a 14-month period, compared with people who received generic weight management advice.</p>
<p>This is important because it suggests a small change approach could be used to prevent the 0.5kg to 1.0kg of weight gain currently seen in the adult population each year, which can contribute towards the development of overweight and obesity over time. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A plate of shortbread biscuits with milky tea." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/504420/original/file-20230113-14-7zcb1n.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/504420/original/file-20230113-14-7zcb1n.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=402&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/504420/original/file-20230113-14-7zcb1n.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=402&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/504420/original/file-20230113-14-7zcb1n.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=402&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/504420/original/file-20230113-14-7zcb1n.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=505&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/504420/original/file-20230113-14-7zcb1n.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=505&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/504420/original/file-20230113-14-7zcb1n.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=505&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Cutting out your favourite snack may help you to better control your weight in the long run.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/coffee-milk-cookies-glutenfree-round-shortbread-1665900226">Lina Ptashka/ Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Further research will be needed to understand whether a small change approach could be a more effective long-term weight gain prevention, and potentially weight loss, strategy. </p>
<h2>How to do it</h2>
<p>If you want to give the small change approach a try, there are two questions you should ask yourself to help get you started: </p>
<ol>
<li>What changes can I make to reduce the calories I eat and/or burn by just 100-200 kcal each day?</li>
<li>Will I be able to achieve these changes even when my motivation is low? </li>
</ol>
<p>Small changes designed by you are more likely to fit into your everyday life and therefore might be easier to sustain over time. But if you’re struggling to design your own small changes, here are a few examples:</p>
<ul>
<li><strong>Walk and talk:</strong> Whether it’s a phone call with colleagues or a catch-up with friends, adding an extra 20-30 minutes of walking into your day can help you burn up to 100 calories. </li>
<li><strong>Take a break:</strong> Most television ad breaks last about 2-3 minutes. Take this time to exercise by doing some crunches, lunges or squats. During an hour-long programme with three ad breaks, you could burn up to 100 calories. </li>
<li><strong>Avoid add-ons:</strong> Although many of us like adding things such as cheese, butter, mayonnaise and ketchup to our meals for more flavour, these tend to contain more calories than many of us realise. For instance, as little as 30g of cheese (about the size of a small matchbox) is 100 calories, while 30g of mayonnaise (about two spoonfuls) is close to 200 calories. Limiting portions, or cutting them out entirely, can make a big difference in the long term. </li>
<li><strong>Take your coffee black:</strong> Hot drinks such as lattes, cappuccinos and hot chocolate can be more calorific than you think. You could reduce your calorie intake by about 100-200 calories by cutting them out. If you can’t bear to go without your day’s coffee, consider getting a smaller size or drinking it black.</li>
</ul>
<p>Watching your weight doesn’t have to be complicated. Making small changes to your diet and lifestyle can add up over time and make all the difference, as the small change approach shows.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/197327/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Henrietta Graham does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Making small changes to your everyday habits may be easier to stick with over the long run.Henrietta Graham, PhD Researcher, Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences, Loughborough UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1937172022-12-05T03:18:34Z2022-12-05T03:18:34ZAlways forgetting to take your medicines? Here are 4 things that could help<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/496080/original/file-20221118-14-4r4lvk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C15%2C5068%2C3434&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">ksenia yakovleva/unsplash</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Taking regular medicines is common, and it’s not unusual for people to miss an occasional dose or take it outside the regular time window. Forgetting to do something is normal, but in the case of medicines, forgetting to take them at the prescribed time can have <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29278439/">negative health effects</a>.</p>
<p>By one <a href="https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/42682/9241545992.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y%20available%20from%20https://apps.who.int/iris/handle/10665/42682">estimate</a>, about half the population of people taking regular medicines don’t take them as prescribed. Is this a breakdown in communication? A lack of understanding of their importance? Forgetfulness? </p>
<p>Largely, reasons for not taking medicines as prescribed can be organised into two types: intentional and unintentional.</p>
<p>Unintentional is when a patient intends to follow the prescribed regimen but doesn’t due to factors outside their control, including forgetfulness, difficulties understanding dosing instructions, or cost.</p>
<p>But for some, a patient consciously decides not to follow the prescribed regimen. This could be due to side effects, or not believing in the necessity of the medicine.</p>
<p>Medication-taking is complex because each person is unique and the challenges to each person’s medication-taking can vary quite significantly. The most effective strategy is one that also considers why a person isn’t taking their medicine. What are some of the support strategies available, and are they actually helpful?</p>
<h2>Pill boxes</h2>
<p>The most <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30561486/">commonly used</a> methods to support medication adherance are organisational strategies such as days-of-the-week pill containers.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/496081/original/file-20221118-20-4r4lvk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Hands taking pills out of a container." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/496081/original/file-20221118-20-4r4lvk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/496081/original/file-20221118-20-4r4lvk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496081/original/file-20221118-20-4r4lvk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496081/original/file-20221118-20-4r4lvk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496081/original/file-20221118-20-4r4lvk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496081/original/file-20221118-20-4r4lvk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496081/original/file-20221118-20-4r4lvk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Pill containers labelled Monday to Friday can be filled at home.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">towfiqu barbhuiya/unsplash</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>These are functional if a patient has to take many different medications. </p>
<p>But they’re not always suitable – if the user does not fill the container correctly or doesn’t remember to collect the prefilled pack (called a Webster-pak, blister pack or dosette box) from the pharmacy, this simple intervention quickly becomes ineffective.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/496082/original/file-20221118-22-8vm3kd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A medication box with many compartments" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/496082/original/file-20221118-22-8vm3kd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/496082/original/file-20221118-22-8vm3kd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496082/original/file-20221118-22-8vm3kd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496082/original/file-20221118-22-8vm3kd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496082/original/file-20221118-22-8vm3kd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496082/original/file-20221118-22-8vm3kd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496082/original/file-20221118-22-8vm3kd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The pharmacy can also make up dosette boxes, with medications for different times of day.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Some medicines can’t be packed because their stability is compromised with repacking, and patients with reduced eyesight or dexterity can <a href="https://www.nps.org.au/australian-prescriber/articles/encouraging-adherence-to-long-term-medication">struggle to use</a> these containers. </p>
<p>So while they are an effective prompt, simple reminder cues such as days-of-the-week pill containers may not be ideal for everyone. </p>
<h2>Alarms</h2>
<p>Pre-set alarms are another commonly used reminder method. </p>
<p>However, this strategy is not infallible, and the <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36175739/">literature shows</a> many patients miss medication doses when out of routine because they turn their alarm off subconsciously when occupied with another task. </p>
<p>Reminder alarms only seem to be effective when they are interactive or personalised.</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/496083/original/file-20221118-15-wkrws0.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Sketch of an automated tablet machine - a round device with padlock" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/496083/original/file-20221118-15-wkrws0.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/496083/original/file-20221118-15-wkrws0.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=721&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496083/original/file-20221118-15-wkrws0.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=721&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496083/original/file-20221118-15-wkrws0.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=721&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496083/original/file-20221118-15-wkrws0.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=905&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496083/original/file-20221118-15-wkrws0.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=905&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496083/original/file-20221118-15-wkrws0.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=905&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Automated pill dispensers are handy for those with memory issues, but they’re not cheap.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>For example, in a handy combination of both methods above, you can now buy automated pill dispensers with alarms that go off at predetermined times and only stop when the medication is removed.</p>
<p>These can be especially handy for those with memory issues such as dementia. However, they are not cheap, costing a few hundred dollars each, and so will not be accessible for everyone.</p>
<h2>Mobile apps</h2>
<p>The latest Apple iOS update allows you to track your medications and schedule reminders. </p>
<p>Medication reminder apps were first developed to support older adults and people with chronic diseases required to manage multiple medicines. </p>
<p>But they’ve now been embraced as a suitable support for anyone wishing to independently manage their own medicines, including those on short-term medicines such as antibiotics. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/496085/original/file-20221118-11-wkrws0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Phone with pill reminders on screen" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/496085/original/file-20221118-11-wkrws0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/496085/original/file-20221118-11-wkrws0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496085/original/file-20221118-11-wkrws0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496085/original/file-20221118-11-wkrws0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496085/original/file-20221118-11-wkrws0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496085/original/file-20221118-11-wkrws0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/496085/original/file-20221118-11-wkrws0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Smart phone apps can help with medication reminders.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>They provide simple, practical health-specific information as well as supporting medication-taking through automation. </p>
<p>According to <a href="https://www1.racgp.org.au/newsgp/clinical/medication-reminder-apps-not-a-bitter-pill-to-help">The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners</a>, a lot of patients like receiving reminder prompts through an app, and it helps them remember to take their medication.</p>
<p>Although the platforms differ slightly, the general premise is a patient independently inputs their medication-taking and prescription refill schedule, and the app then generates automatic reminders for the patient. </p>
<p>The only downside is like any notification, they can be easily dismissed or overlooked.</p>
<h2>Habit stacking</h2>
<p>When our day changes, for example if we go out for brunch and we usually take our medicines with breakfast, or an unexpected visitor arrives at the usual 11am pre-lunch tablet time, often we forget our medications. This is where “habit stacking” may be beneficial. </p>
<p>Although habit stacking is a relatively new approach to fostering medication taking, habit formation has been repeatedly shown to <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30229557/">effectively support wellbeing</a>. Linking medication-taking to a behaviour that does not change from day to day, such as cleaning your teeth, or removing shoes when entering the house, can help you to remember medications. </p>
<p>Some more habit stacking examples to support medication taking may include:</p>
<p>• hygiene routine – shower, shave, swallow</p>
<p>• after dinner unwind – cuppa and meds</p>
<p>• morning mantra as you leave the house – keys, phone, wallet, meds.</p>
<h2>What else can we do?</h2>
<p>We are all unique, so to make sure we actually take our medicines we need to find what works for us, and consider why we weren’t actually taking them in the first place. </p>
<p>Reminders, gadgets, habit stacking, or a combination may help. We need strategies that can adapt to the unexpected.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/193717/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Amelia Cossart does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>About half the population of people taking regular medicines don’t take them as prescribed. Here are some tips to help you remember.Amelia Cossart, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, The University of QueenslandLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1855772022-08-09T12:17:40Z2022-08-09T12:17:40ZTo break unhealthy habits, stop obsessing over willpower – two behavioral scientists explain why routines matter more than conscious choices<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/476775/original/file-20220730-27214-mvt4h8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=51%2C17%2C5760%2C3776&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Many people attribute their coffee drinking to the need to feel more alert, but research shows that habit is just as big a driver behind caffeine consumption.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com.mx/detail/foto/young-woman-sitting-on-park-bench-drinking-imagen-libre-de-derechos/656296993?adppopup=true">Westend61/Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>If you’re <a href="https://www.statista.com/statistics/456366/total-us-coffee-per-capita-consumption-by-age-group/#">like many Americans</a>, you probably start your day with a cup of coffee – a morning latte, a shot of espresso or maybe a good ol’ drip brew.</p>
<p>A common explanation among avid coffee drinkers is that we drink coffee to wake ourselves up and alleviate fatigue. </p>
<p>But that story doesn’t completely hold up. After all, the amount of caffeine in a cup of coffee <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fct.2007.02.020">can vary wildly</a>. Even when ordering the same type of coffee from the same coffee shop, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/jat/27.7.520">caffeine levels can double from one drink to the next</a>. And yet, we coffee drinkers don’t seem to notice. </p>
<p>So what else might be driving us in our quest for that morning brew?</p>
<p>That’s one question we set out to answer in our recent research. The answer has far-reaching implications for the way we approach major societal challenges such as diet and climate change.</p>
<p>As <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=xGaNvJ8AAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao">behavioral</a> <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=SlkbsS4AAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao">scientists</a>, we’ve learned that people often repeat everyday behaviors out of habit. If you regularly drink coffee, you likely do so automatically as part of your habitual routine – not just out of tiredness.</p>
<p>But habit just doesn’t feel like a good explanation – it’s unsatisfying to say that we do something just because it’s what we’re used to doing. Instead, we concoct more compelling explanations, like saying we drink coffee to ease our morning fog. </p>
<p>This reluctance means that we fail to recognize many habits, even as <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.83.6.1281">they permeate our daily lives</a>. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/rWWAGd4LIgE?wmode=transparent&start=13" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Habits are formed in specific environments that provide a cue, or trigger, for the behavior.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Unpacking what lies behind habits</h2>
<p>To test whether people underestimate the role that habit plays in their life, we asked more than 100 coffee drinkers what they think drives their coffee consumption. They estimated that tiredness was about twice as important as habit in driving them to drink coffee. To benchmark these assumptions against reality, we then tracked these people’s coffee drinking and fatigue over the course of one week.</p>
<p>The actual results starkly diverged from our research participants’ explanations. Yes, they were somewhat more likely to drink coffee when tired – as would be expected – but we found that habit was an equally strong influence. In other words, people wildly overestimated the role of tiredness and underestimated the role of habit. Habits, it seems, aren’t considered much of an explanation. </p>
<p>We then replicated this finding in a second study with a behavior that people might consider a “bad” habit – failing to help in response to a stranger’s request. People still overlooked habit and assumed that their reluctance to proffer help was due to their mood at the time.</p>
<p>The gap between the actual and perceived role of habit in our lives matters. And this gap is key to understanding why people often struggle to change repeated behaviors. If you believe that you drink coffee because you are tired, then you might try to reduce coffee drinking by going to bed early. But ultimately you’d be barking up the wrong tree – your habit would still be there in the morning. </p>
<h2>Why habits are surprisingly difficult to change</h2>
<p>The reason that habits can be so difficult to overcome is that they are not fully under our control. Of course, most of us can control a single instance of a habit, such as by refusing a cup of coffee this time or taking the time to offer directions to a lost tourist. We exert willpower and just push through. But consistently reining in a habit is fiendishly difficult. </p>
<p>To illustrate, imagine you had to avoid saying words that contain the letter “I” for the next five seconds. Pretty simple, right? But now imagine if you had to maintain this rule for a whole week. We habitually use many words that contain “I.” Suddenly, the required 24/7 monitoring turns this simple task into a far more onerous one. </p>
<p>We make a similar error when we try to control unwanted habits and form new, desirable ones. Most of us can achieve this in the short run – think about your enthusiasm when starting a new diet or workout regimen. But we inevitably get distracted, tired or just plain busy. When that happens, your old habit is <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/1745691621994226">still there to guide your behavior</a>, and you end up back where you started. And if you fail to recognize the role of habit, then you’ll keep overlooking better strategies that effectively target habits.</p>
<p>The flip side is also true: We don’t recognize the benefits of our good habits. One study found that on days when people strongly intended to exercise, those with weak and strong exercise habits got similar amounts of physical activity. On days when intentions were weaker, however, those with <a href="https://doi.org/10.1123/jsep.2013-0173">strong habits were more active</a>. Thus, strong habits keep behavior on track even as intentions ebb and flow.</p>
<h2>It’s not just willpower</h2>
<p>American culture is partly responsible for the tendency to overlook habits. Compared with residents of other developed nations, Americans are more likely to say that <a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2014/10/Pew-Research-Center-Inequality-Report-FINAL-October-17-2014.pdf">they control their success in life</a>.</p>
<p>Accordingly, when asked what stops them from making healthy lifestyle changes, Americans commonly cite <a href="https://www.apa.org/news/press/releases/stress/2010/key-findings#">a lack of willpower</a>. Granted, willpower is useful in the short term, as we muster the motivation to, for example, sign up for a gym membership or start a diet. </p>
<p>But research shows that, surprisingly, people who are more successful at achieving long-term goals <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/a0026545">exert – if anything – less willpower</a> in their day-to-day lives. This makes sense: As explained above, over time, willpower fades and habits prevail. </p>
<p>If the answer isn’t willpower, then what is the key to controlling habits? </p>
<p>Changing habits begins with the environments that support them. Research shows that leveraging the cues that trigger habits in the first place can be incredibly effective. For example, reducing the visibility of cigarette packs in stores <a href="https://doi.org/10.1136/tobaccocontrol-2017-053996">has curbed cigarette purchases</a>. </p>
<p>Another path to habit change involves friction: in other words, making it difficult to act on undesirable habits and easy to act on desirable ones. For example, one study found that <a href="https://doi.org/10.1901/jaba.1993.26-247">recycling increased</a> after recycle bins were placed right next to trash cans – which people were already using – versus just 12 feet away. </p>
<p>Effectively changing behavior starts with recognizing that a great deal of behavior is habitual. Habits keep us repeating unwanted behaviors but also desirable ones, even if just enjoying a good-tasting morning brew.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/185577/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Wendy Wood receives research funding from National Institute on Aging, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Asaf Mazar does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Understanding and changing the environment in which habits form is a critical step when it comes to breaking unwanted behaviors and forming healthy ones.Asaf Mazar, Postdoctoral fellow in Behavioral Science, University of PennsylvaniaWendy Wood, Provost Professor Emeritus of Psychology and Business, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and SciencesLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1785922022-03-15T15:43:45Z2022-03-15T15:43:45ZWhat you do every day matters: The power of routines<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/451963/original/file-20220314-117594-1qotb2m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">As COVID-19 public health measures begin to relax, reflecting on routines and their value is useful when moving toward a 'new normal.'</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The word “routine” can bring to mind words like mundane or ordinary. During the pandemic’s <a href="https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/11-631-x/11-631-x2021001-eng.htm">disruptions to daily life</a>, routines may have felt boring and restrictive. However, as an occupational therapist and <a href="https://doi.org/10.5014/ajot.2011.001313">researcher</a> of the <a href="https://www.routledge.com/Promoting-Activity-and-Participation-in-Individuals-with-Serious-Mental/Krupa-Edgelow-Chen-Mieras/p/book/9780367629021">impact of activity and participation on mental health</a>, I know that routines can be powerful tools. They can support cognitive function, boost health and provide meaningful activities and social opportunities.</p>
<p>Early in the pandemic, <a href="https://doi.org/10.7189/jogh.10.020315">researchers</a> pointed to the value of daily routines to cope with change. As the two-year anniversary of the pandemic coincides with the <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/phac-march4-update-1.6373321">relaxation of public health measures</a> across the country, reflecting on routines and their value is useful when moving toward a “new normal.”</p>
<h2>Routines support cognitive function</h2>
<p>First, having a daily routine and regular habits supports cognitive function and may even free people up to be more creative. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/0018726718765630">Research has found</a> that having regular work processes allows workers to spend less cognitive energy on recurring tasks, which can support focus and creativity for more complex tasks. </p>
<p>Think of typical morning routines that existed before the pandemic: helping family members get on their way, taking a usual route to work, grabbing a warm beverage along the way, saying hello to coworkers, flipping on a computer or opening a calendar. Having habits like these can set the stage for a productive work day. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/451970/original/file-20220314-103117-j0fnyp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A woman with a briefcase and a child with backpack holding hands, seen from behind walking out a door." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/451970/original/file-20220314-103117-j0fnyp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/451970/original/file-20220314-103117-j0fnyp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/451970/original/file-20220314-103117-j0fnyp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/451970/original/file-20220314-103117-j0fnyp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/451970/original/file-20220314-103117-j0fnyp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/451970/original/file-20220314-103117-j0fnyp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/451970/original/file-20220314-103117-j0fnyp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Simple habits can set the stage for a productive day.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>A <a href="https://www.masoncurrey.com/daily-rituals">review of the daily rituals of influential artists</a> found that many artists have well defined work routines which may support their creativity rather than constrain it. <a href="https://www.baycrest.org/Baycrest/Healthcare-Programs-Services/Clinical-Services/Neuropsychology-Cognitive-Health/Neuropsychology-Treatment-Programs/Memory-Aging-Program-(3)/Peer-reviewed-Articles">Memory research</a> shows that regular routines and habits can support older adults to function better in their home environments. </p>
<p>If taking medications at the same time and putting the keys in their spot is part of a daily routine, less energy will be spent looking for lost objects and worrying about maintaining one’s health, freeing up time for other things people want to do in their day.</p>
<h2>Routines promote health</h2>
<p>Regular routines can also help people feel like they have control over their daily lives and that they can take positive steps in managing their health. For example, making time for exercise within routines can help meet <a href="https://csepguidelines.ca/">recommended daily activity levels</a>. This is especially relevant now, since <a href="https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/45-28-0001/2021001/article/00019-eng.htm">research shows</a> that people who reduced their activity levels during the pandemic could experience enduring health effects. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/451972/original/file-20220314-28-3g3rbu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Three women on yoga mats on grass, stretching" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/451972/original/file-20220314-28-3g3rbu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/451972/original/file-20220314-28-3g3rbu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/451972/original/file-20220314-28-3g3rbu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/451972/original/file-20220314-28-3g3rbu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/451972/original/file-20220314-28-3g3rbu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/451972/original/file-20220314-28-3g3rbu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/451972/original/file-20220314-28-3g3rbu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Making time for exercise within routines can help meet recommended daily activity levels.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>As people increase activity outside their homes, they might consider taking transit to school and work, returning to organized fitness activities and the gym and opportunities to include movement throughout the day. Other ways that routines can support health include regular <a href="https://cdn1.sph.harvard.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2022/01/HealthyLivingGuide21-22.pdf">meal preparation</a> and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/smi.1292">getting enough sleep</a>, activities that seem simple but can pay dividends in <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/jgs.17035">healthy aging</a> over a lifetime.</p>
<h2>Routines provide meaning</h2>
<p>Regular routines can also go beyond the streamlining of daily tasks and add some spice to life. Evidence indicates that a health-promoting activity <a href="https://books.google.ca/books?hl=en&lr=&id=5JouDwAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PT318&dq=meaningful+activity+benefits&ots=YDX4O8HA4z&sig=aWv94PLoGC_nnHvz0S-6949vYxU">like walking</a> can offer chances to enjoy nature, explore new places and socialize. </p>
<p>Research on the <a href="http://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780195187243.013.0018">concept of flow</a>, a state of full absorption in the present moment, shows that activities like sports, games, fine arts and music can be fulfilling and reinforcing. Regular participation in meaningful and engaging activities can also contribute positively to <a href="https://doi.org/10.2190%2FAG.70.4.b">mental health</a>.</p>
<h2>Small steps to build routines</h2>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/451973/original/file-20220314-24-h8e6bg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Scattered scrabble tiles, with seven standing tiles reading 'routine'" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/451973/original/file-20220314-24-h8e6bg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/451973/original/file-20220314-24-h8e6bg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/451973/original/file-20220314-24-h8e6bg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/451973/original/file-20220314-24-h8e6bg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/451973/original/file-20220314-24-h8e6bg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/451973/original/file-20220314-24-h8e6bg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/451973/original/file-20220314-24-h8e6bg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Routines have the power to help us manage our health and our work, home and community lives.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>If you think your daily routines could use a tune up, consider some small steps:</p>
<p>• Use a day-timer or smart phone app to organize your activities and put the things you want to do in your schedule. </p>
<p>• Choose a regular time to wake up and to go to bed and try to stick to it most days of the week.</p>
<p>• Make physical activity manageable with neighbourhood walks or bike rides a few times a week. </p>
<p>• Start a new hobby or re-engage in a past one, like playing sports or games, making arts and crafts, playing an instrument or singing.</p>
<p>• Keep an eye out for meaningful activities that may be popping back up in your community, like a book club at the library or a social walking group. </p>
<p>Routines have the power to help us manage our health and our work, home and community lives. Two years after the pandemic changed everyone’s lives, people now have an opportunity to consider the routines they want to keep and the meaningful things they need in their daily lives to stay productive, happy and healthy.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/178592/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Megan Edgelow receives funding from the Canadian Occupational Therapy Foundation and the Social Sciences & Humanities Research Council of Canada. </span></em></p>Routines can be powerful tools to help people build a ‘new normal’ as pandemic restrictions lift. Routines can support creativity, boost health and provide meaningful activities and opportunities.Megan Edgelow, Assistant Professor in Health Sciences, Queen's University, OntarioLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1737252021-12-21T13:11:44Z2021-12-21T13:11:44ZThe best way to follow through on your New Year’s resolution? Make an ‘old year’s resolution’<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/438516/original/file-20211220-15-zf40ri.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=7%2C14%2C4815%2C3188&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">More often than not, the best-laid plans for the new year go awry.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/this-year-i-will-text-on-a-vintage-typewriter-royalty-free-image/958919128?adppopup=true">Nora Carol Photography/Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><a href="https://theconversation.com/la-mejor-manera-de-cumplir-un-proposito-de-ano-nuevo-haga-un-proposito-de-ano-viejo-219873"><em>Leer en español.</em></a> </p>
<p>If you’ve made a New Year’s resolution, your plot for self-improvement probably kicks into gear sometime on Jan. 1, when the hangover wears off and the quest for the “new you” begins in earnest.</p>
<p>But if research on habit change is any indication, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0234097">only about half</a> of New Year’s resolutions are likely to make it out of January, much less last a lifetime. </p>
<p>As experts in <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=yrmBP5AAAAAJ&hl=en">positive psychology</a> and <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=QrpiSzEAAAAJ&hl=en">literature</a>, we recommend an unconventional but more promising approach. </p>
<p>We call it the “old year’s resolution.” </p>
<p>It combines insights from psychologists and America’s first self-improvement guru, Benjamin Franklin, who pioneered a habit-change model that was way ahead of its time.</p>
<p>With the “old year” approach, perhaps you can sidestep the inevitable challenges that come with traditional New Year’s resolutions and achieve lasting, positive changes.</p>
<h2>A period to practice – and fail</h2>
<p><a href="https://doi.org/10.1159/000324861">Research has highlighted</a> two potential pitfalls with New Year’s resolutions. </p>
<p>First, if you lack the confidence to invest in a full-fledged effort, failure to achieve the goal may become a self-fulfilling prophesy. Furthermore, if you maintain the change but perceive progress as unacceptably slow or inadequate, you may abandon the effort.</p>
<p>The old year’s resolution is different. Instead of waiting until January to start trying to change your life, you do a dry run before the New Year begins. </p>
<p>How does that work?</p>
<p>First, identify a change you want to make in your life. Do you want to eat better? Move more? Sock away more savings? Now, with Jan. 1 days away, start living according to your commitment. Track your progress. You might stumble now and then, but here’s the thing: You’re just practicing. </p>
<p>If you’ve ever rehearsed for a play or played scrimmages, you’ve used this kind of low-stakes practice to prepare for the real thing. Such experiences give us permission to fail.</p>
<p>Psychologist <a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/44330/mindset-by-carol-s-dweck-phd/">Carol Dweck</a> and her colleagues <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/00461520.2012.722805">have shown</a> that when people see failure as the natural result of striving to achieve something challenging, they are more likely to persist to the goal. </p>
<p>However, if people perceive failure as a definitive sign that they are not capable – or even deserving – of success, failure can lead to surrender. </p>
<p>If you become convinced that you cannot achieve a goal, something called “<a href="https://ppc.sas.upenn.edu/sites/default/files/lhtheoryevidence.pdf">learned helplessness</a>” can result, which means you’re likely to abandon the endeavor altogether.</p>
<p>Many of us unintentionally set ourselves up for failure with our New Year’s resolutions. On Jan. 1, we jump right into a new lifestyle and, unsurprisingly, slip, fall, slip again – and eventually never get up. </p>
<p>The old year’s resolution takes the pressure off. It gives you permission to fail and even learn from failure. You can slowly build confidence, while failures become less of a big deal, since they’re all happening before the official “start date” of the resolution.</p>
<h2>A gardener weeding one bed at a time</h2>
<p>Long before he became one of America’s greatest success stories, Franklin devised a method that helped him overcome life’s inevitable failures – and could help you master your old year’s resolutions.</p>
<p>When he was still a young man, Franklin came up with what he called his “bold and arduous project of arriving at moral perfection.” With charming confidence, he set out to master 13 virtues, including temperance, frugality, chastity, industry, order and humility.</p>
<p>In a typically Franklinian move, he applied a little strategy to his efforts, concentrating on one virtue at a time. He likened this approach to that of a gardener who “does not attempt to eradicate all the bad herbs at once, which would exceed his reach and his strength, but works on one of the beds at a time.” </p>
<p><a href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/20203/20203-h/20203-h.htm">In his autobiography</a>, where he described this project in detail, Franklin did not say that he tied his project to a new year. He also did not give up when he slipped once – or more than once.</p>
<p>“I was surpris’d to find myself so much fuller of faults than I had imagined; but I had the satisfaction of seeing them diminish,” Franklin wrote.</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/438272/original/file-20211217-21-1qce054.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Open page of old book." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/438272/original/file-20211217-21-1qce054.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/438272/original/file-20211217-21-1qce054.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=766&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/438272/original/file-20211217-21-1qce054.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=766&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/438272/original/file-20211217-21-1qce054.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=766&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/438272/original/file-20211217-21-1qce054.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=962&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/438272/original/file-20211217-21-1qce054.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=962&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/438272/original/file-20211217-21-1qce054.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=962&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Benjamin Franklin recorded his slip-ups over the course of a week.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://hdl.huntington.org/digital/collection/p15150coll7/id/107">The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>He made his progress visible in a book, where he recorded his slip-ups. <a href="https://hdl.huntington.org/digital/collection/p15150coll7/id/107">One page</a> – perhaps only a hypothetical example – shows 16 of them tied to “temperance” in a single week. (Instead of marking faults, we recommend recording successes in line with <a href="https://time.com/5756833/better-control-emotions-better-habits/">the work of habit expert B.J. Fogg</a>, whose research suggests that celebrating victories helps to drive habit change.)</p>
<p>Repeated failures might discourage someone enough to abandon the endeavor altogether. But Franklin kept at it – for years. To Franklin, it was all about perspective: This effort to make himself better was a “project,” and projects take time. </p>
<p>[<em>Get the best of The Conversation, every weekend.</em> <a href="https://memberservices.theconversation.com/newsletters/?nl=weekly&source=inline-weeklybest">Sign up for our weekly newsletter</a>.]</p>
<h2>‘A better and a happier man’</h2>
<p>Many years later, Franklin <a href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/20203/20203-h/20203-h.htm">admitted that he never was perfect</a>, despite his best efforts. His final assessment, however, is worth remembering: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>“But, on the whole, tho’ I never arrived at the perfection I had been so ambitious of obtaining, but fell far short of it, yet I was, by the endeavour, a better and a happier man than I otherwise should have been if I had not attempted it.” </p>
</blockquote>
<p>Treating self-improvement as a project with no rigid time frame worked for Franklin. In fact, his scheme probably helped him <a href="https://www.history.com/topics/american-revolution/benjamin-franklin">succeed wildly in business, science and politics</a>. Importantly, he also found immense personal satisfaction in the endeavor: “This little artifice, with the blessing of God,” <a href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/20203/20203-h/20203-h.htm">he wrote</a>, was the key to “the constant felicity of his life, down to his 79th year, in which this is written.”</p>
<p>You can enjoy the same success Franklin did if you start on your own schedule – now, during the old year – and treat self-improvement not as a goal with a starting date but as an ongoing “project.”</p>
<p>It might also help to remember Franklin’s note to himself on a virtue he called, coincidentally, “Resolution”: “Resolve to perform what you ought; perform without fail what you resolve.”</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/173725/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Mark Canada has written an Audible Original called "Ben Franklin's Lessons in Life."</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Christina Downey does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>An ‘old year’ approach takes into account findings from psychological research and the wisdom of habit guru Benjamin Franklin.Mark Canada, Chancellor and Professor of English, Indiana University Kokomo, Indiana University KokomoChristina Downey, Professor of Psychology, Indiana UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1702682021-11-23T13:30:45Z2021-11-23T13:30:45ZThe COVID-19 pandemic offers an opportunity to make a healthy shift in body ideals<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/429824/original/file-20211102-27-1cwrekq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=28%2C0%2C6202%2C4156&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Behavioral science researchers have found that people tend to have more positive body self-images when they appreciate the body for what it can do – not just how it looks.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/young-man-looking-into-the-mirror-in-a-fitness-royalty-free-image/1345958237?adppopup=true">Tempura/E+ via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The COVID-19 pandemic has changed everyday life for many people in both trivial and profound ways. Embracing pants without a waistband, trying out creative baking – and perhaps spending a great deal of time sitting, whether for virtual meetings or Netflix binges. </p>
<p>For many people, these kinds of behaviors, coupled with the ongoing stressors and limitations of the pandemic, translated to <a href="https://doi.org/10.3390/nu13020671">pounds gained</a> and newfound or increased feelings <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2020.110426">of discomfort about body image</a>.</p>
<p>It may seem untimely to think about addressing weight loss or body image while still dealing with the uncertainties and pressures of the ongoing pandemic. However, science has shown that <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037//0893-3200.16.1.14">living through disasters and personal upheavals</a> often causes a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037//0893-3200.16.1.14">shift in life priorities</a> and thinking more about <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9280.2009.02466.x">the value of one’s own life</a>. Science also reveals that life disruptions can be a great time to think about, and bring about, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvp.2015.11.008">habit change</a>. </p>
<p>I’m a <a href="https://psy.uncg.edu/people/boseovski/">developmental psychologist</a> and <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=Gwes7ewAAAAJ&hl=en"></a><a href="https://www.precisionnutrition.com/certified-coach-directory">health coach</a>. I’ve taught university students about cognition and motivation <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=Gwes7ewAAAAJ&hl=en">for the past 20 years</a>, as well as about lifelong physical and mental well-being. Behavioral scientists find that when these sorts of upheavals disrupt regular routines, it can become easier than ever before <a href="https://doi.org/10.1353/bsp.2016.0008">to get rid of unhealthy behaviors</a> and replace them with positive <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvp.2015.11.008">changes in personal habits</a>.</p>
<p>That said, this isn’t another article about how to lose weight. It’s not intended to provoke a knee-jerk reaction like pursuing a <a href="https://theconversation.com/j-los-body-distressing-or-inspiring-for-mid-life-women-131351">Jennifer Lopez</a> rear or <a href="https://theconversation.com/thor-ragnarok-the-end-of-the-world-but-not-as-we-know-it-86345">Chris Hemsworth-y</a> lats. </p>
<p>Instead, I am inviting people to redefine “the ideal body” by better appreciating the body’s functionality – what it can do – rather than focusing mostly on how it appears. </p>
<h2>Celebrities aren’t good role models</h2>
<p>According to Merriam-Webster, an ideal is a <a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ideal">“standard of perfection, beauty or excellence</a>.” </p>
<p>However, respecting and appreciating one’s body for what it can do, rather than how it looks or compares to cultural ideals, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bodyim.2020.11.006">can positively influence body image</a>. For example, behavioral scientists have found that exercising for health, enjoyment and wellness is associated with <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/1747-0080.12575">a positive body image and healthy eating habits</a>, while a more negative body image is associated with exercising for appearance-related reasons. </p>
<p>There are physical benefits as well. For example, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.isci.2021.102995">putting an emphasis on fitness goals</a>, rather than weight loss, has been shown to enhance longevity. Scientists have also found that <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bjsports-2021-104080">exercise can reduce an adult’s risks for a severe case of COVID-19</a> as well as <a href="https://theconversation.com/exercise-may-help-reduce-risk-of-deadly-covid-19-complication-ards-136922">potentially deadly complications</a>. </p>
<p>On top of all this, as journalist Charles Duhigg reports in his book <a href="https://charlesduhigg.com/the-power-of-habit/">“The Power of Habit,”</a> experts have found that exercise is a keystone habit that often supports adopting other positive health behaviors, such as better nutrition. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Woman running with dog on a beach road." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/430079/original/file-20211103-17-307qq3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/430079/original/file-20211103-17-307qq3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/430079/original/file-20211103-17-307qq3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/430079/original/file-20211103-17-307qq3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/430079/original/file-20211103-17-307qq3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/430079/original/file-20211103-17-307qq3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/430079/original/file-20211103-17-307qq3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">To successfully change an old habit for the better, it’s important to create an environment that supports the new goal – such as picking out exercise clothes the night before for an early morning walk or run.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/woman-running-with-dog-royalty-free-image/627573747?adppopup=true">Zing Images/Digital Vision via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Appearance and attainability</h2>
<p>As a psychologist, I am aware that we are <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.126.3.390">an appearance-oriented culture</a>. I’m not suggesting that people disregard aesthetic goals.</p>
<p>Rather, I’m suggesting that looking to other people to define one’s own body image ideals can be maladaptive. This is especially true when people choose celebrity icons and social media influencers as their ideals. For instance, there’s evidence that comparing one’s own appearance to images of celebrities is associated with both <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/1359105320988312">body image dissatisfaction and disordered eating</a>. </p>
<p>Research suggests that the most effective role models are <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/gpr0000059">people with whom one identifies or shares some similarities</a>. This makes it easier to set goals that are attainable, rather than focusing on the public images of celebrity icons. Here, too, it is important that the goals are realistic and applicable to people’s own lives. It’s also important that they avoid making appearance comparisons to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bodyim.2014.10.004">people that they know</a>, as this can also lead to body dissatisfaction.</p>
<p>Setting attainable goals instead involves focusing on <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/1559827617729634">specific behaviors</a> to which one can commit. For example, if someone sets a goal of moving with greater ease, they might plan on going to the gym for 30 minutes three times per week. If the goal is fitting into pre-pandemic clothing, they might eliminate a less-than-healthy snack from the daily eating routine. </p>
<p>These are actions that people can control directly, whereas it is unclear how one would achieve the appearance or weight of a particular celebrity or friend.</p>
<h2>A personal example</h2>
<p>Clarifying the personal meaning of “ideal body” isn’t just a thought experiment. Understanding one’s values helps in setting goals and then establishing habits in daily life to achieve them. </p>
<p>Using myself as an example: As a 48-year-old, my personal body image ideal involves becoming as strong as possible as I age. I don’t want to feel or look delicate, so my workouts primarily involve resistance training – with some running thrown in for stress relief. These are attainable because I value the benefits of these activities.</p>
<p>To be sure that I will maintain my exercise routines, I schedule them in advance so that I know exactly how I will fit them into my day rather than leaving it up to chance and forgoing them entirely or doing them too close to my bedtime, which interferes with my sleep.</p>
<p>For role models, I look to the behavior of other strong women – such as the women of <a href="https://www.girlsgonestrong.com/">Girls Gone Strong</a>, an organization that promotes women’s health and strength through fitness – to inspire me to achieve my goals. </p>
<h2>Changing the context</h2>
<p>Even after figuring out personal body image values and setting attainable goals, it can still be hard to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/1745691615598515">let go of older unhealthy habits</a>. Wendy Wood, a University of California psychologist and foremost expert in this arena, has found that <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jesp.2011.10.011">many behaviors are activated automatically</a> by being in a context – a location – that has past associations with that behavior. Further, those associations matter more than a person’s current goals. </p>
<p>[<em>More than 140,000 readers get one of The Conversation’s informative newsletters.</em> <a href="https://memberservices.theconversation.com/newsletters/?source=inline-140K">Join the list today</a>.]</p>
<p>Say that attaining one’s body image and fitness goals involves taking a brisk walk every morning. Turning that into a habit means <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/10463283.2020.1808936">avoiding past behaviors</a> – don’t set the coffee maker to make the morning java, turn on the television or check the phone before the walk – as well as adopting new behaviors, such as setting out the right clothes the night before and establishing a route in advance. </p>
<p>How to get started? A fruitful first step might be to ask: In what ways has the pandemic crisis changed my life values, priorities and attitudes? The answers may be a good foundation for successfully making a healthy shift in body ideals.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/170268/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Janet J. Boseovski does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>For many, the pandemic has disrupted daily habits around eating and fitness – which makes it a prime time to shake up old assumptions about achieving an ideal body.Janet J. Boseovski, Professor of Psychology, University of North Carolina – GreensboroLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1527392021-01-06T22:15:10Z2021-01-06T22:15:10ZStopping the spread of COVID-19 misinformation is the best 2021 New Year’s resolution<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/377390/original/file-20210106-17-iljfb3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=29%2C7%2C4962%2C3315&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Anxiety and other negative emotions can cause us to spread misinformation.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>As we begin a new year and head back (at least virtually) to work and school, we might be thinking about personal things we would like to improve. Some people resolve to exercise more, stick to a budget or cut out sugar from their diet. Others resolve to write that book, use social media less or volunteer in their communities. These are all great ideas, and I’d like to add another one.</p>
<p>Though we all made our New Year’s resolutions on Jan. 1, I respectfully suggest a January resolution that would, if we each committed to it, produce a large positive impact on society. This year, I resolve — and would like to encourage others to resolve — to stop the spread of misinformation at the individual level.</p>
<p>In 2020, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0239666">misinformation was revealed to be a major issue</a> impacting elections, world politics and our health during COVID-19. And with the arrival of a new calendar year, the problem has not gone away. In fact, with the COVID-19 vaccine rollout now picking up steam, <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2020/12/21/social-media-vaccine-misinformation-449770">we need to fight misinformation harder than ever before</a>.</p>
<h2>Misinformation and propaganda</h2>
<p><a href="https://yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300234015/misinformation-age">Misinformation is not new</a>, and propaganda has been part of political communication since the dawn of politics. <a href="https://www.doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780190923624.001.0001">While misinformation can be spread by government and corporate public relations officials, celebrities and international bad actors</a>, it is enabled through our own social networks as we like and share information with others. </p>
<p>In other words, we can put a wrench in the works of those who are trying to sow deception and division by stopping a key flow of bad information.</p>
<p>But how can we stop the spread? To ensure we are not inadvertently sharing misinformation, we must first understand what drives us to share misinformation, so that we can identify our own triggers and resist them. None of us share information we think is false: we share information that seems true to us, and unwittingly spread misinformation in the process.</p>
<p>But wait, you say, I would never spread misinformation. I only spread true information. Unfortunately, the fact is that we all <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2020/06/05/stop-spreading-misinformation/">share information without checking it at least some of the time</a>, which is why <a href="http://doi.org/10.1126/science.aap9559">false information spreads online so much faster than the truth</a>. Social media platforms are designed to increase our engagement and as such, they actually nudge us towards sharing without thinking too hard about what we’re spreading.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/teaching-children-digital-literacy-skills-helps-them-navigate-and-respond-to-misinformation-145988">Teaching children digital literacy skills helps them navigate and respond to misinformation</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Sharing information is a social act</h2>
<p>People have a wide variety of motivations for sharing information online. My team’s research on COVID-19 social media engagement shows that people will <a href="https://www.ideas-idees.ca/blog/canadian-researchers-analyse-spread-covid-19-misinformation-online">share information they think will help keep themselves and their loved ones safe</a>. This is supported by law professor Tim Caulfield, who writes that our <a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.ca/books/588525/relax-dammit-by-timothy-caulfield/9780735236325">perception of risk is likely to drive engagement with misinformation</a>. </p>
<p>Misinformation is <a href="https://science.sciencemag.org/content/359/6380/1146">more likely to spread when it’s novel or uniquely interesting</a>. My own team’s ongoing research shows that people are more likely to trust information that they feel to be right, particularly if it’s delivered by people they perceive as experts.</p>
<p>What does this tell us about the individual’s role in sharing misinformation? Put simply, it shows that what causes us to share misinformation is a combination of factors: strong negative emotions like anxiety and perceived risk, social bonds between families, friends and loved ones across online and offline social networks, and feelings of correctness. </p>
<p>People share information they <em>feel to be true</em> because they’re worried and trying to keep loved ones safe. They share information delivered by people they trust — and sometimes those people aren’t actually experts in the field they are opining on.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/BIYgJAJtmI4?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">A CityTV look at health misinformation spread by actress and lifestyle guru Gwyneth Paltrow.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>How to halt misinformation</h2>
<p>Understanding our own tendencies for sharing information and misinformation can help us stop the spread. </p>
<p>So how can knowing what motivates us to share content help us? You can short-circuit your automatic sharing tendencies and push back against the nudges from social media platforms to prevent the spread of misinformation to your own networks. It’s the same as making any change in your life: identify the triggers and change your behaviour.</p>
<p>This means that when the content makes you feel emotional — particularly if it makes you anxious — stop and think before you click.</p>
<p>If the content is particularly new, novel or strange, stop and think before you click.</p>
<p>If the content is something you want to share right away, because it has the perception of urgency about it (ACT NOW! WARNING!), stop and think before you click.</p>
<p>If the content would be particularly appealing to your social networks, stop and think before you click.</p>
<p>If the content is shared by a celebrity, or someone who is not actually an expert in the subject of the content, stop and think before you click.</p>
<p>And most importantly, if you are sharing content because deep in your heart and soul, you know it to be true; if you are sharing content that “just feels right” — I cannot stress this enough — stop and think before you click.</p>
<h2>Moving beyond emotion</h2>
<p>I know when I feel really emotional, I don’t always think clearly, and I know when I want to share information that appeals to my family and friends, I’m not always thinking about accuracy, so I try to be extra careful in those moments.</p>
<p>I recommend following the SIFT framework developed at Washington State University that tells people to <a href="https://hapgood.us/2019/06/19/sift-the-four-moves/">stop, investigate the source, find trusted coverage and trace the claims back to the source</a>. This means thinking like a detective (or an investigative journalist) and gathering evidence for the information you are sharing with others.</p>
<p>Besides following the SIFT framework, when I stop and think before I click, I like to ask critical questions of the content I’m about to share. I ask: “Why do I think this is true?” and “How emotional do I feel about this topic?” I also ask: “Where can I find more information?”, “Who does this information benefit?” and “What might be an alternative viewpoint I haven’t considered?”</p>
<p>I’m not perfect, and I’ll probably still share inaccurate information at times. That’s why for 2021, I resolve to double down on my efforts to stop the spread of misinformation.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/152739/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jaigris Hodson receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada. </span></em></p>As fake news and propaganda increase, a worthwhile New Year’s resolution is getting out of the habit of spreading misinformation. And like any habit, becoming aware of triggers is the first step.Jaigris Hodson, Associate Professor of Interdisciplinary Studies, Royal Roads UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1469752020-10-25T12:43:31Z2020-10-25T12:43:31ZHow mobile shopping habits differ around the world, from Brazil to Australia<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/364386/original/file-20201020-17-1bw1kyt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C6240%2C4156&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Research show comfort levels, value perceptions and motivations when it comes to m-commerce differ depending on whether consumers live in developed or developing countries.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Pexels)</span></span></figcaption></figure><p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/quora/2018/05/25/what-is-the-difference-between-e-commerce-and-mobile-commerce/#259339044c6d">Mobile commerce (m-commerce) platforms</a> often operate in several international markets. M-commerce managers often focus on which features should <a href="https://bizfluent.com/info-8788551-advantages-selling-standardized-product.html">be kept constant</a> and which should <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesagencycouncil/2020/05/22/four-ways-to-adapt-your-e-commerce-digital-marketing-strategy-to-the-current-crisis/#3264af4b46a6">be adapted</a> to specific characteristics of national markets. </p>
<p>Consider, for instance, an m-commerce platform designed for <a href="https://www.retailbiz.com.au/online-retailing/mcommerce-changing-face-australian-retail/">Australian consumers</a>. To what extent should it be adapted when it’s introduced in Brazil? Are the tastes and needs of consumers in Australia similar to those of <a href="https://www.pagbrasil.com/news/ecommerce-in-brazil-2019/">consumers in Brazil</a>? </p>
<p>These are the questions that motivate and drive a series of <a href="https://doi.org/10.1509/jim.17.0129">multinational m-commerce studies</a> conducted by Goodman School of Business researchers and their global colleagues.</p>
<p>By using and interacting with an <a href="https://www.inc.com/christina-desmarais/5-tips-on-nailing-international-mobile-commerce.html">m-commerce platform</a>, consumers form their perceptions of its positive and negative attributes based on <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/0965254X.2020.1786847">value perceptions</a>. Our team of researchers have found that <a href="https://hbr.org/2016/09/the-elements-of-value">value perceptions</a> fall under five major categories when it comes to m-commerce. </p>
<h2>Five value categories</h2>
<p>To illustrate, imagine that Jackie wants to buy a new bicycle. She downloads a retailer’s app to search for product information (<a href="https://seeker.digital/create-content-customer-value/">informational value</a>). If she finds a good deal, the app may help her save money (<a href="https://marketing-insider.eu/economic-value-estimation/">monetary value</a>). Jackie then thanks her friend who recommended the app, and now they have something in common to discuss (<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/kellerfaygroup/2012/07/02/focus-on-customers-with-social-value/#b9515e452517">social value</a>). In addition, Jackie did not have to visit several retailers to decide what to buy, so the app also helped her save time (<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/jefffromm/2019/01/04/marketing-convenience-to-the-modern-consumer/#a6e22c5127fb">convenience value</a>). Finally, Jackie can check off buying a new bicycle from her to-do list (<a href="https://sloanreview.mit.edu/article/understanding-customer-expectations-of-service/">performance value</a>).</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A woman wearing a mask looks at her phone" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/364819/original/file-20201021-23-15wx6ov.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/364819/original/file-20201021-23-15wx6ov.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/364819/original/file-20201021-23-15wx6ov.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/364819/original/file-20201021-23-15wx6ov.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/364819/original/file-20201021-23-15wx6ov.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/364819/original/file-20201021-23-15wx6ov.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/364819/original/file-20201021-23-15wx6ov.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A woman wearing a face mask to help curb the spread of COVID-19 reads from her mobile phone in Putrajaya, Malaysia, in October 2020.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(AP Photo/Vincent Thian)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Consumers are motivated to use the m-commerce platform according to these value perceptions. These motivations can be <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.intmar.2015.09.004">either hedonic and utilitarian</a>. While some consumers are motivated to use mobile platforms platform because they’re enjoyable and fun, others are motivated because the platform is functional and efficient. </p>
<p>These value perceptions and motivations explain how consumers use m-commerce. For some, the use of m-commerce has an intentional nature in that they must think about whether using it to fulfil a certain goal is a good option. </p>
<figure class="align-left ">
<img alt="The Uber Eats app on a smartphone." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/364390/original/file-20201020-23-1j65e89.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/364390/original/file-20201020-23-1j65e89.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=405&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/364390/original/file-20201020-23-1j65e89.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=405&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/364390/original/file-20201020-23-1j65e89.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=405&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/364390/original/file-20201020-23-1j65e89.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=508&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/364390/original/file-20201020-23-1j65e89.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=508&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/364390/original/file-20201020-23-1j65e89.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=508&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The Uber Eats app is seen on an iPhone.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>For instance, when ordering food, these consumers may take some time to decide whether to order from the app or call the restaurant directly. In contrast, others tend to have a more <a href="https://doi.org/10.1509/jim.16.0033">habitual use of m-commerce</a> in that they do not even have to think about what to do. For those consumers, opening the app and ordering food is an automatic process that does not need much consideration.</p>
<h2>M-commerce appreciation</h2>
<p>Based on a survey of almost 2,000 consumers across multiple countries, we have found that virtually all consumers appreciate m-commerce as a source of informational, social, performance and convenience value. Surprisingly, except for consumers in India and Brazil, consumers do not seem to rely on m-commerce because it helps them save money. </p>
<p>We find that consumers’ m-commerce experience can be vastly different depending on their “<a href="https://www.mobileappdaily.com/mobile-readiness-key-to-ecommerce-websites">m-commerce readiness</a>” stages. Everyone has a tech-savvy friend who is extremely comfortable using their smartphones for virtually anything. They pay their bills, buy products and make restaurant reservations on their phones. Interestingly, m-commerce-ready consumers are more prevalent in <a href="https://www.marketwatch.com/press-release/global-mobile-commerce-market-2020-leading-players-industry-updates-future-growth-business-prospects-forthcoming-developments-and-future-investments-by-forecast-to-2023-2020-09-23">developed countries</a> (Australia, the United States, the United Kingdom and Singapore). </p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="A man's hands are seen using a smartphone." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/364388/original/file-20201020-13-dm0c1g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/364388/original/file-20201020-13-dm0c1g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/364388/original/file-20201020-13-dm0c1g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/364388/original/file-20201020-13-dm0c1g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/364388/original/file-20201020-13-dm0c1g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/364388/original/file-20201020-13-dm0c1g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/364388/original/file-20201020-13-dm0c1g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Consumers comfortable with m-commerce are more prevalent in developed countries.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Piqsels)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>At the same time, everyone also has a tech-resistant friend who prefers to do things the old-fashioned way. They either pay their bills in person, at an ATM or perhaps even from their desktop computers, but never from a smartphone. Such consumers are more prevalent in <a href="https://invoicehome.com/blog/m-commerce-in-developing-countries">developing countries</a> (Brazil, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Vietnam).</p>
<p>For managers of <a href="https://www.techfunnel.com/martech/6-important-types-of-m-commerce-services-and-applications/">international m-commerce applications</a>, here is news they can use: Differences between developed and developing countries reveal varied experiences. The <a href="https://chainstoreage.com/consumers-are-ready-m-commerce-are-retailers">more m-commerce-ready</a> consumers in developed countries use m-commerce platforms not only because they are efficient, but also because they are fun and enjoyable. </p>
<h2>Fun elements are critical</h2>
<p>For these consumers, using m-commerce can be a deliberate as well as an automatic process. As such, <a href="https://www.techpluto.com/the-future-of-m-commerce/">m-commerce solutions</a> that present innovative designs and fun elements and that elicit habitual use may be preferable. </p>
<p>In contrast, the <a href="https://vietnamnews.vn/economy/295031/m-commerce-to-take-off-in-vn.html">more m-commerce-resistant</a> consumers in developing countries are mostly motivated by efficiency. For them, m-commerce is essentially transactional and functional. They don’t feel comfortable enough with m-commerce platforms to use them out of habit. </p>
<p>Since reluctant consumers do not tend to habitually use m-commerce, managers are encouraged to highlight <a href="https://www.cleverism.com/mobile-commerce-introduction/">its superiority to other commerce platforms</a>.</p>
<p>But these insights aren’t carved in stone. Our findings suggest that the perceptions and motivations of consumers in the developing world are shifting to become more similar to those of consumers in the developed world. So as consumers in developing countries become more m-commerce-ready, these apps should experiment with more innovative designs and encourage their habitual use.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/146975/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>New research on mobile commerce shopping habits in nine countries contains some valuable insights for m-commerce managers and how they can attract new customers.Narongsak (Tek) Thongpapanl, Associate Dean of Research and Graduate Studies & Professor of Marketing and Product Innovation, Brock UniversityAbdul Rehman Ashraf, Associate professor, marketing, Brock UniversityAli Anwar, PhD candidate, marketing, Wilfrid Laurier UniversityLuciano Lapa, PhD candidate, marketing, Indiana UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1412612020-07-15T12:12:17Z2020-07-15T12:12:17ZWith kids spending more waking hours on screens than ever, here’s what parents need to worry about<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/346205/original/file-20200707-42-iw60pd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C6140%2C3143&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Today's children are getting way more screen time than usual.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/boy-playing-video-game-on-computer-royalty-free-image/1216829942">Isabel Pavia/Moment collection via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Millions of <a href="https://theconversation.com/nearly-3-in-4-us-moms-were-in-the-workforce-before-the-covid-19-pandemic-is-that-changing-141510">working parents</a> have spent months largely trapped in their homes with their children. Many are trying to get their jobs done remotely in the constant presence of their kids, and they are desperate for some peace and quiet.</p>
<p>Many mothers and fathers have sought any available remedy that would enable them to do their jobs and fight cabin fever – including some who have given their children a free pass on video games, social media and television. One survey of more than 3,000 parents found that screen time for their kids had <a href="https://parents-together.org/parents-alarmed-as-kids-screen-time-skyrockets-during-covid-19-crisis-heres-what-you-can-do/">increased by 500% during the pandemic</a>. </p>
<h2>Screen time rules</h2>
<p>In case you missed it, when the <a href="https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/325147/WHO-NMH-PND-2019.4-eng.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y">World Health Organization released daily screen time guidelines</a> for children in April 2019, it suggested tight limits.</p>
<p>Infants should get none at all, and kids between the ages of 1 and 5 should spend no more than one hour daily staring at devices. The WHO does not provide specific limits for older children, but some research has suggested that excessive screen time for teenagers could be <a href="https://time.com/5437607/smartphones-teens-mental-health/">linked to mental health problems like anxiety and depression</a>. </p>
<p>Kids were already spending far more time than recommended with screens before the pandemic, and had been for years.</p>
<p>[<em>Deep knowledge, daily.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters/the-daily-3?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=deepknowledge">Sign up for The Conversation’s newsletter</a>.]</p>
<p>As far back as the late 1990s, children between the ages of 3 and 5 years old were averaging <a href="https://www.bizjournals.com/bizwomen/news/latest-news/2019/02/how-screen-time-affects-kids-development.html?page=all">two and a half hours per day with their screens</a>. And, naturally, what <a href="https://theconversation.com/parents-cut-yourself-some-slack-on-screen-time-limits-while-youre-stuck-at-home-133904">screen time rules</a> families had been enforcing have been on hold since at least mid-March 2020, when most U.S. communities entered an era of social distancing.</p>
<p><iframe id="InFCo" class="tc-infographic-datawrapper" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/InFCo/2/" height="400px" width="100%" style="border: none" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
<h2>Prone to distraction</h2>
<p>Should parents worry if their children are spending more time than ever online to learn, play and while away the hours until they can freely study and socialize again? The short answer is no – as long as they don’t allow pandemic screen time habits to morph into permanent screen time habits.</p>
<p>Shortly before the coronavirus led to schools across the country suspending in-person instruction for safety reasons, I wrapped up my upcoming book on the power of digital devices to distract students from their learning. In “<a href="https://www.basicbooks.com/titles/james-m-lang/distracted/9781541699816/">Distracted:
Why Students Can’t Focus and What You Can Do About It</a>,” I argue that trying to eliminate distractions from classroom takes the wrong approach. The human brain is naturally prone to distraction, as scientists and philosophers have been attesting for centuries now.</p>
<p>The problem with distraction in school is not the distractions themselves. Children and adults alike can use social media or view screens in perfectly healthy ways. </p>
<p>The problem occurs when excessive attention to screens crowds out other learning behaviors. A child watching YouTube on her phone in the classroom or during study time is not developing her writing skills or mastering new vocabulary. Teachers should consider how to cultivate better attention to those behaviors, rather than trying to eliminate all distractions.</p>
<p>Likewise, parents should not view screens as the enemy of their children, even if they do need to be wary of <a href="https://theconversation.com/increasing-screen-time-during-the-coronavirus-pandemic-could-be-harmful-to-kids-eyesight-138193">the impact of excessive screen time on eye health</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/worry-over-kids-excessive-smartphone-use-is-more-justified-than-ever-before-108585">how much sleep their kids get</a>.</p>
<p>The trouble with excessive screen time is that it eclipses healthy behaviors that all children need. When children gaze passively at screens, they aren’t exercising, playing with their friends or siblings, or snuggling with their parents during story time.</p>
<p>What I believe parents need to worry about isn’t how much time kids are spending cradling their devices during our current crisis. It’s whether their children are forming habits that will continue after the pandemic’s over. Those habits could stop today’s youngest Americans from resuming healthier and more creative behaviors like reading or <a href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/lifestyle/family-time/imaginative-play-benefits/">imaginative play</a>.</p>
<p>If kids can kick their pandemic screen patterns, and return to the <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/ppm0000203">relatively healthier levels of screen time</a> they had before, they will probably be just fine. The human brain is remarkably malleable. It has extraordinary potential to rewire itself in the face of <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK326735/">accident or illness</a> and <a href="https://www.psychologicalscience.org/observer/adaptations-of-the-brain">adapt to new circumstances</a>.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1278798699389280256"}"></div></p>
<h2>Making a habit of bingeing</h2>
<p>This feature of the human brain, known as <a href="https://theconversation.com/what-is-brain-plasticity-and-why-is-it-so-important-55967">neuroplasticity</a>, is one of the reasons that doctors and health organizations recommend limits to the screen time of young children. Experts, educators and families alike don’t want their brains developing as organs primarily designed for television binge-watching and video game marathons. </p>
<p>In the current moment, parents should be grateful for brain neuroplasticity, and take heart from the fact that whatever changes that might have occurred over the past few months need not be permanent ones. The brain <a href="https://positivepsychology.com/neuroplasticity/">transforms in response to our circumstances and behaviors</a> – and it changes again as those circumstances and behaviors evolve. A few months of excessive screen time won’t override an otherwise healthy childhood of moderate screen time and active play.</p>
<p>The ways in which work and school are adapting to social distancing suggest that screens are not the enemy. Rather, they are enabling people around the world to work and learn and communicate with loved ones during this extraordinary time.</p>
<p>The real enemies of healthy development in children are the same enemies adults face: a <a href="https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/wellness-and-prevention/sitting-disease-how-a-sedentary-lifestyle-affects-heart-health">sedentary lifestyle</a>, <a href="https://www.apa.org/monitor/2019/05/ce-corner-isolation">social isolation</a> and <a href="https://research.udemy.com/research_report/udemy-depth-2018-workplace-distraction-report/">distractions from work and learning</a>. Using screens too much can contribute to all of these problems – but they can also counter them.</p>
<p>Researchers point out, after all, that <a href="https://theconversation.com/3-smart-ways-to-use-screen-time-while-coronavirus-keeps-kids-at-home-133896">not all screen time is equal</a>. You might not make the same judgment about a child writing a novel using Google Docs, FaceTiming with Grandma or using a smartphone to geocache with their friends.</p>
<p>As restrictions on everyone’s movements and activities evolve in the coming months, parents can support the healthy development of their children by encouraging them to return to such healthy and imaginative behaviors – whether they take place in front of screens or not.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/141261/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>James M. Lang does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Children will probably be OK, especially if their families make sure this elevated level of screen time doesn’t turn into a long-term habit.James M. Lang, Professor of English and Director of the Center for Teaching Excellence, Assumption CollegeLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1292862020-01-03T13:48:59Z2020-01-03T13:48:59ZHow to use habit science to help you keep your New Year’s resolution<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/308365/original/file-20200102-11929-1lpjj45.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=15%2C15%2C5203%2C3928&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Willpower and habits involve different parts of the brain.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-vector/set-addicted-human-characters-overeating-smoking-1467234629">lemono/Shutterstock.com</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><a href="https://health.usnews.com/health-news/blogs/eat-run/articles/2015-12-29/why-80-percent-of-new-years-resolutions-fail">More than 80%</a> of people who make New Year’s resolutions have already given up on their goals by February.</p>
<p>While there’s a lot of resolution advice on the internet, much of it fails to highlight the crux of behavioral change. </p>
<p>To make individual decisions – whether it’s what to wear or which gift to buy for someone – <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0149763414002802">you draw on brain systems involving executive control</a>. You make the decision, add a shot of willpower and, voilà, it’s done. </p>
<p>But most resolutions don’t involve a single decision. Eating healthier, exercising more and spending less all involve habitual behaviors that involve <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/nrn1919">neural circuitry</a> tied to unconscious thought. </p>
<p>Take eating. You can decide you want to eat healthier, but the memories of your eating habits persist. At around 11 a.m., you start thinking of muffins, your go-to morning snack. At 8 p.m., you automatically think of ice cream, your usual dessert. This is the way habits work: <a href="https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/abs/10.1146/annurev-psych-122414-033417">Certain contexts</a>, like times of the day and locations, bring to mind thoughts of certain rewards – like the tasty foods you tend to eat.</p>
<p>You can exert some willpower and stop yourself snacking over the course of one day. <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8121959">But denial can backfire</a>: By quashing a desire, you give it extra fuel to plague you in the future. Over time, we tend to give up.</p>
<p>The key to mastering habits is to understand how difficult it is to simply will them away. But you can deploy a kind of “reverse-engineering” based on <a href="https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250159076">the science of habits</a>.</p>
<h2>The facts of friction</h2>
<p>One way to reverse engineer bad habits is to create friction. </p>
<p>Physical distance is a simple source of friction. <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0195666314000920">A 2014 study</a> involved a bowl of buttered popcorn and a bowl of apple slices. One group of participants sat closer to popcorn than the apple slices, and the other sat closer to the apple slices. The first group ate three times more calories. The second group of participants could see and smell the popcorn, but the distance created friction, and they were less likely to eat it.</p>
<p>For your own eating habits, the strategies can be as simply as putting junk food out of sight – off kitchen counters and into the pantry, so it’s slightly more difficult to access.</p>
<p>If you want to cultivate good habits, you can diminish the friction for the new behavior. <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/how-close-do-you-need-to-be-to-your-gym-1490111186">For example</a>, researchers looked at the GPS data of people with gym memberships. Those who traveled about 3.7 miles to a gym went five or more times a month. However, those who had to travel around 5.2 miles went only about once a month.</p>
<p>Again, the strategy is obvious: Reduce friction to working out. Choose a gym that’s on your way home from the office. Keep your gym bag always at the ready. My son, an avid bike racer, puts his <a href="https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-1-d&biw=1301&bih=740&tbm=isch&sa=1&ei=iT4OXqaMEuSJggfZk53gBA&q=indoor+bike+trainer&oq=indoor+bike+trainer&gs_l=img.3..0l7j0i7i30l3.1190.1794..1891...0.0..1.421.1306.7j3-1j1......0....1..gws-wiz-img.......0i67.kKHMrOCxb6w&ved=0ahUKEwjm9OnNzeXmAhXkhOAKHdlJB0wQ4dUDCAY&uact=5">indoor bike trainer</a> in the middle of his living room before leaving for work. When he gets home, he finds it’s usually easier to do his planned workout.</p>
<h2>Out with the old cues</h2>
<p>Another strategy to reverse-engineer your habits is to change the cues that activate them. Cues can include the time of day, a location and the routines associated with a behavior. If you regularly make coffee, your cues might be entering your kitchen shortly after waking up and seeing your coffee machine.</p>
<p>Cues change naturally when you start new relationships, change jobs or move. These offer a window of opportunity to act on your goals and desires without being dragged down by the cues that trigger your old habits. </p>
<p>For example, <a href="http://doi.org/10.1007/s10869-016-9468-3">researchers found</a> in a 2017 study that professional athletes whose performance had declined often improved after being traded to or signing with a new team. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvp.2007.10.005">Another study</a> found new residents of a small British town with strong environmental values mostly took the bus or cycled to work. But people who were not recent movers mostly drove, even though they held similar values. </p>
<p>When cues change, it becomes easier to switch up your habits and routines. Say you want to eat healthier. Try taking a new route to work instead of the one that takes you by the café where you buy double cream cappuccinos. When you’re chatting on the phone, do it in the living room instead of the kitchen.</p>
<p>Even in food-rich contexts, cue control is possible. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/oby.2008.286">A 2012 study</a> found that overweight patrons at all-you-can-eat buffet restaurants were more likely to sit facing the food, while thinner people tended to sit with their backs or sides facing the buffet. Thinner people were also more likely to put napkins on their laps, a minor way to add friction to getting more food.</p>
<p>Breaking out of bad habits isn’t easy. It takes time and repetition. But as you work toward forming better habits, you can, at the very least, incorporate these simple reverse-engineering strategies to help you avoid becoming one of the 80% of people who throw in the towel.</p>
<p>[ <em><a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=expertise">Expertise in your inbox. Sign up for The Conversation’s newsletter and get a digest of academic takes on today’s news, every day.</a></em> ]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/129286/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Wendy Wood currently receives funding from NIH and the CDC for her research habits. </span></em></p>It’s incredibly difficult to will away bad habits. But two simple strategies can make things easier.Wendy Wood, Provost Professor of Psychology and Business, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and SciencesLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1287242020-01-03T09:36:48Z2020-01-03T09:36:48ZThe best way to ditch bad habits: what science can teach us<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/306845/original/file-20191213-85412-87ahb6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C189%2C5988%2C3494&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/close-portrait-human-hands-breaking-down-353471183">Trong Nguyen/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>It’s a new year and many people are in the mood for making a fresh start. And that often means giving something up (cigarettes, alcohol, junk food). Unfortunately, the odds of sticking with new year resolutions are not good. Come February, <a href="https://health.usnews.com/health-news/blogs/eat-run/articles/2015-12-29/why-80-percent-of-new-years-resolutions-fail">80% of people</a> will have given up giving up. So what can we learn from the 20% who make it?</p>
<p>Some might just be lucky, but most – whether they realise it or not – will be using techniques based on scientific evidence. While you might feel you have little in common with people who overcome drug dependency, you can benefit from the techniques that have been shown to help this group.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/dry-january-a-convenient-distraction-for-the-alcohol-industry-106891">Dry January: a convenient distraction for the alcohol industry</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>The two Ps</h2>
<p>Perseverance underpins most stories of successful change, and it can take anywhere from six to 30 attempts to quit for those dependent on drugs to become <a href="https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/6/6/e011045?utm_term=usage-012019&utm_content=consumer&utm_campaign=bmjopen&utm_medium=cpc&utm_source=trendmd">abstinent</a>. While these numbers might seem off putting, it’s important to be realistic about the need to persevere. Incremental change <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0271531711000674">is known</a> to be superior to overly ambitious targets – appealing as they might be. </p>
<p>This leads to the second “p” - planning. Conventional wisdom suggests that planning improves the chances of success, but there is evidence <a href="https://academic.oup.com/ntr/article-abstract/11/7/827/1159359">that unplanned attempts</a> to quit smoking can be just as successful. Good news for anyone embarking on an impromptu attempt to change.</p>
<p>So although spontaneous attempts can be successful for smokers, picking the right day to start changing other habits is likely to play a part. We know that <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.3109/10826084.2014.966846">motivation and energy fluctuate</a>, so think about when you will have maximum levels of both. Starting well gives the initial encouragement needed to get to day two.</p>
<h2>Learn from lapsing</h2>
<p>Having a lapse shouldn’t be viewed as a failure or used as an excuse to give up. It can be tempting to view change in a binary way - success or failure. Instead, <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4553654/">view a lapse as an opportunity</a> to gain insight, reflecting as honestly as possible on why the lapse happened and how this could be avoided or counteracted on the next attempt at change. Research has repeatedly shown us that these processes are crucial for changing ingrained habits, so much so that in the world of addiction, treatment is often referred to as “<a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/1747-597X-6-17">relapse prevention</a>”, to acknowledge that treatment is as much about preventing the negative as it is accentuating the positive. </p>
<p>High levels of self-efficacy (a belief and confidence in personal ability) when trying to change behaviour <a href="https://academic.oup.com/ntr/article-abstract/6/Suppl_3/S375/1084740">predict ultimate success</a>. Factors that <a href="https://shapeamerica.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/02701367.2015.1093072?casa_token=_2AE3wjmnJ8AAAAA%3AphX2c5iYgdQRqQEJOYw7jipAg5uSJQkR7-FifvW_UPhN4Vrr44buh89DdRdGiwQwzmsEZuensdpSu98#.XfEIo6iTKgA">increase</a> self-efficacy
include self-talk (“I can do this”), previous success at changing other behaviour or habits, and affirmations from others. </p>
<p>Cultural differences can influence how comfortable and skilled an affirmation is. The way Americans routinely affirm each other is in contrast to those in the UK who tend to be suspicious of affirmations. </p>
<p>Believing change is possible can be undermined by “anticipatory anxiety” – when a person <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2010-16227-005">expects and fears withdrawal symptoms</a> when changing a habit, such as smoking. The anticipated discomfort is usually greater than the actual experience but can paralyse any attempt to test reality. Rather than focusing on what you are losing by giving up smoking or alcohol, think of what you will gain (more money, better sleep). A useful exercise to help assess personal benefits is the decision balance sheet.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/306418/original/file-20191211-95153-1pzd39.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/306418/original/file-20191211-95153-1pzd39.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/306418/original/file-20191211-95153-1pzd39.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=543&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/306418/original/file-20191211-95153-1pzd39.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=543&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/306418/original/file-20191211-95153-1pzd39.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=543&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/306418/original/file-20191211-95153-1pzd39.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=682&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/306418/original/file-20191211-95153-1pzd39.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=682&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/306418/original/file-20191211-95153-1pzd39.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=682&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Decision balance sheet.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Agency for healthcare research and quality</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Tell someone what you plan to do, you won’t want to let them or yourself down. Weight Watchers employ this type of social contract in some ways to encourage but also as a deterrent to relapse. <a href="https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-319-60573-9_2">Shame and guilt</a> are powerful emotions that most people will try to avoid.</p>
<p>So when it comes to adopting a scientific approach to change, the evidence provides some helpful tips. Be prepared for several change attempts, don’t be too ambitious, don’t keep your change a secret and allow yourself to be complimented and encouraged. </p>
<p>Finally, today might be the right day to start. If you’ve only just decided, with motivation and energy on your side, your chances of ditching that bad habit are just as good as those who’ve spent weeks preparing. Making a change is relatively easy for most of us, maintaining that change is evidently a lot tougher. So while some might be lucky enough to make a change and stick to it, most of us will have to keep trying, the science suggests we’ll get there in the end.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/128724/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Studies of how people dependent on drugs and alcohol quit their habit can help the rest of us quit our own bad habits.Ian Hamilton, Associate Professor, Addiction and Mental Health, University of YorkSally Marlow, Addictions Researcher, King's College LondonLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1208832019-08-11T12:19:06Z2019-08-11T12:19:06Z5 ways to shift consumers towards sustainable behaviour<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/287077/original/file-20190806-84199-1q2z2bh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=439%2C259%2C4623%2C3250&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Consumers want to embrace sustainability, but still need some guidance.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Most people want to be sustainable, but have a hard time taking the necessary actions. </p>
<p>According to Nielsen, a data analytics company, sustainability is the latest consumer trend. Their research shows chocolate, coffee and bath products with sustainability claims <a href="https://www.nielsen.com/us/en/insights/report/2018/whats-sustainability-got-to-do-with-it/">grew much faster than their traditional counterparts</a>. Yet only 0.2 per cent of chocolates and 0.4 per cent of coffees have environmental claims. </p>
<p>How can we translate this consumer sustainability buzz into actual action? To find out, our group reviewed 320 academic articles in the top consumer behaviour journals and <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0022242919825649?journalCode=jmxa">identified five routes to shift consumers towards sustainable choices</a>: social influence, habits, individual self, feelings and cognitions, and tangibility. Together, these make a handy acronym, SHIFT. </p>
<h2>Social influence</h2>
<p>Humans are social animals and will follow the actions of others, especially on ethical issues. When people learn they are <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvp.2014.11.002">using more energy than their neighbours</a>, they <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvp.2005.08.002">decrease their energy usage</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/287073/original/file-20190806-84195-v5gvcf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/287073/original/file-20190806-84195-v5gvcf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=390&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/287073/original/file-20190806-84195-v5gvcf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=390&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/287073/original/file-20190806-84195-v5gvcf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=390&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/287073/original/file-20190806-84195-v5gvcf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=491&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/287073/original/file-20190806-84195-v5gvcf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=491&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/287073/original/file-20190806-84195-v5gvcf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=491&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Insulating your home, sealing air leaks and turning the thermostat up in the summer and down in the winter can save energy and lower bills.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>But what if the sustainable behaviour has yet to be established? For example, how does one convince people to install solar panels if no one in their neighbourhood is doing it? A “brand ambassador” can be invaluable. Solar advocates who had installed solar panels in their own homes were able to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-018-0647-4">recruit 63 per cent more residents to purchase and install solar panels</a>. </p>
<p>For ethical behaviours, learning about the behaviours of others can be motivating. In one example, when business students on a college campus heard that computer science students were better at composting and recycling, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1509%2Fjmr.12.0335">they more than doubled their efforts</a>. </p>
<h2>Habits</h2>
<p>To build a new sustainable habit, one must first break bad habits. This is easiest when someone is experiencing big life changes, such as moving, getting married or starting a new job. In one study, people who had recently moved <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvp.2007.10.005">cut their car usage almost in half</a>. </p>
<p>Another strategy is to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/9781119241072.ch27">apply penalties for bad behaviour, rather than rewarding good behaviour</a>. There is a possibility, however, that people will return to their old ways if the penalty is removed and the new habit isn’t formed.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/287070/original/file-20190806-84249-1ttrbuc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/287070/original/file-20190806-84249-1ttrbuc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/287070/original/file-20190806-84249-1ttrbuc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/287070/original/file-20190806-84249-1ttrbuc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/287070/original/file-20190806-84249-1ttrbuc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/287070/original/file-20190806-84249-1ttrbuc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/287070/original/file-20190806-84249-1ttrbuc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">New shopping habits can reduce the amount of waste sent to landfill.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>To build new habits, it can be helpful to make the sustainable action easy to do, provide timely prompts, offer incentives to help get the new behaviour started and provide real-time feedback about actions over an extended period of time. A review of feedback techniques finds when real-time energy use is shared directly with homeowners, <a href="https://www.eci.ox.ac.uk/research/energy/downloads/smart-metering-report.pdf">electricity consumption dropped by five to 15 per cent</a>. </p>
<h2>Individual self</h2>
<p>Sustainability can appear more attractive when the personal benefits such as health or product quality are highlighted. Emphasizing self-efficacy also works. When people know their actions matter, they make greener choices. </p>
<p>Self-consistency is also important. People like their words and actions to be consistent. Often one environmental commitment can snowball into other actions and changes over time. For example, someone who insulates their house to improve energy efficiency may be more likely to unplug electric devices when they leave for a vacation. </p>
<p>Likewise, consumers expect companies to be consistent. In one study, when a hotel made visible environmental efforts (such as offering compostable toiletries) and asked guests to save energy, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1509%2Fjmr.14.0441">guests reduced their energy usage by 12 per cent</a>. In the absence of visible efforts, the appeal appeared hypocritical and energy use increased. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-the-coffee-industry-is-about-to-get-roasted-by-climate-change-85054">How the coffee industry is about to get roasted by climate change</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>There’s also self-concept to consider. People make choices that match their perception of who they are or who they want to be. One study found that environmentalism is sometimes perceived as being feminine, which <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/jcr/ucw044">can turn away some men who subscribe to traditional gender roles</a>. Presenting environmentalism as a way to protect and preserve wilderness environments was attractive to both men and women, and closed the gender gap that is often seen in sustainability.</p>
<h2>Feelings and cognitions</h2>
<p>Sometimes we make decisions at the spur of the moment, based on how we feel at the time. And sometimes we make decisions after thoughtful deliberation. When communicating about sustainability, it is important to consider both the heart and the head. </p>
<p>Consumers seek out positive emotions such as happiness, pride and the warm glow that comes from doing good. If the sustainable option is fun, people will naturally want to do it. Conversely, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-013-1841-9">negative emotions such as fear and guilt</a> can be effective <a href="https://doi.org/10.1509%2Fjm.11.0454">when used subtly</a>. But an overly emotional, guilt-tripping message is a turn-off and will either be actively ignored or even induce the opposite behaviour (psychological reactance). </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/language-matters-when-the-earth-is-in-the-midst-of-a-climate-crisis-117796">Language matters when the Earth is in the midst of a climate crisis</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Providing consumers with the correct information and education is important, but it must be framed so that consumers care. Energy labels highlighting the watts used by different light bulbs have little effect on consumer purchases, but energy labels showing the 10-year cost <a href="http://www.acrwebsite.org/volumes/v44/acr_vol44_1021610.pdf">quadrupled energy-efficient purchases to 48 per cent from 12 per cent</a>. Thoughtfully designed eco-labels are a great way to communicate sustainability to consumers. </p>
<h2>Tangibility</h2>
<p>In general, <a href="https://www.aeaweb.org/articles?id=10.1257/002205102320161311">people don’t care much about abstract, future consequences</a>. Therefore, it’s critical to make sustainability tangible. </p>
<p>One way is to communicate the local and proximate impacts of pro-environmental actions. For example, how are local animals, plants and people already being affected by climate change? </p>
<iframe frameborder="0" class="juxtapose" width="100%" height="395" src="https://cdn.knightlab.com/libs/juxtapose/latest/embed/index.html?uid=4fcbc35a-b850-11e9-b9b8-0edaf8f81e27"></iframe>
<p>Concrete examples also help. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2006.10.004">People are more moved by a photograph showing how far a single glacier has retreated in one year</a> than by a graph of glacier retreat around the world. </p>
<p>To match consumer timescales with environmental timescales, project consumers into the future. One study found that people who were asked to consider their legacy (“How will I be remembered?”), <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177%2F0956797614561266">donated 45 per cent more to a climate change charity</a>. </p>
<p>To make the SHIFT, use several strategies at once. For example, make the behaviour social and tangible. Test the approach in a small group and measure the results. If it doesn’t work, try something else until you find a winner and then scale up. </p>
<p>Working together, we can close the “green gap” and turn intentions into actions.</p>
<p>[ <em>Deep knowledge, daily.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/ca/newsletters?utm_source=TCCA&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=deepknowledge">Sign up for The Conversation’s newsletter</a>. ]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/120883/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>David J. Hardisty receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, as well as the Environmental Defense Fund. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Katherine White receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Council (SSHRC) of Canada. An earlier version of the research was funded by Sitra, the Finnish Innovation Fund. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Rishad Habib receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Council (SSHRC) of Canada and is on the advisory board of Better Eating International, a non-profit organization.</span></em></p>There’s a buzz around sustainability, but consumers still struggle to develop new habits. Here’s how to change that.David J. Hardisty, Assistant Professor of Marketing & Behavioral Science, University of British ColumbiaKatherine White, Professor of Marketing and Behavioural Science, University of British ColumbiaRishad Habib, PhD student, Sauder School of Business, University of British ColumbiaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1169462019-06-06T21:26:43Z2019-06-06T21:26:43ZDon’t let your phone interrupt the good vibe of a summer music festival<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/279914/original/file-20190617-118501-1xnz21i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=916%2C233%2C5074%2C3754&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Consider running wild and free at this summer's music festivals -- without your phone. </span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Nicholas Green/Unsplash</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>For many communities, summertime is festival season. Festivals allow us to escape our everyday lives. Whether it is time spent listening to music outside with our friends or trying out food trucks on date night, community events are a valued part of social life.</p>
<p>As many people head to their favourite festival they will do so with their mobile phone safely tucked into their pocket. But what most people don’t consider is how this will impact their experience — for better or worse.</p>
<p>We’ve come to accept mobile devices as part of our everyday lives and many of us cannot imagine a day without them. Our phones help us organize our work and families and help us to stay connected to friends. Many people feel safer if they have their phone with them.</p>
<p>Most people give little thought to how our devices impact the experiences we have. Recent <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/02614367.2019.1618895">research by our team</a> has revealed that the habit of using our devices spills over into our festival visits and that while our phones may present benefits, they can also negatively affect our experiences. You might want to think about how much your mobile device features in the memories you make this summer.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/277280/original/file-20190530-69071-k8bvfz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=98%2C0%2C5365%2C3637&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/277280/original/file-20190530-69071-k8bvfz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/277280/original/file-20190530-69071-k8bvfz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/277280/original/file-20190530-69071-k8bvfz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/277280/original/file-20190530-69071-k8bvfz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/277280/original/file-20190530-69071-k8bvfz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/277280/original/file-20190530-69071-k8bvfz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A festival goer at the Positivus festival in Salacgrīva, Latvia is carefree without her phone.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Krists Luhaers/Unsplash</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>For the past five years we have been studying how and why people use mobile devices at festivals. Our findings offer an opportunity to reflect on the choices we make and the effect they are having on our leisure time.</p>
<p>Research results showed that mobile device habits formed in daily life influence use when visiting a festival. Some people may not be bothered by the <a href="https://scholarworks.umass.edu/ttracanada_2016_conference/7">spillover of their phone into their festival experiences</a> but it is also possible that this habit is interfering with what we want to get out of attending events. </p>
<h2>Leave home without your phone?</h2>
<p><a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/295104893_Mobile_Device_Use_at_Festivals_The_Role_of_Habit?_sg=OLd5yVzxbsh4rkkwTPqJOheW8T5soKSyxPL1S2jGcmjY7feg8CYlj0LArSDoLdWfGUyQAse0686v64XSiS4z59ywo3wgFoYh0LlPh619.7CxEiZ-cfTWQOR3xkmsn8rtVBLJYQinfA62kg5v3unIGb6dZOlsCUQcENQu">Some people actively reject using their phones when attending an event</a> as a way to remain present in the festival experience. Other people find it unsettling to leave home without their phone and if they do take it along and the battery dies they are disappointed at the missed opportunity to take photos and text to connect with friends. </p>
<p>Interviews with people attending festivals revealed that other people can be a powerful trigger to initial phone use. Festival goers described sitting with friends who were texting or searching on their phones and suddenly they felt compelled to use their phone as well. This <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/use-mirroring-to-connect-with-others-1474394329">mirroring behaviour</a> is a well known response people have in social situations. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/277281/original/file-20190530-69091-z74u6q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/277281/original/file-20190530-69091-z74u6q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/277281/original/file-20190530-69091-z74u6q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/277281/original/file-20190530-69091-z74u6q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/277281/original/file-20190530-69091-z74u6q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/277281/original/file-20190530-69091-z74u6q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/277281/original/file-20190530-69091-z74u6q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Some of us have a hard time putting the phone away and like to take pictures of the event or our friends.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Hanny Naibaho / Unsplash</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The research shows that when we decide to use our phones to check work email, to check up on the kids or any other activities that have nothing to do with the festival, our satisfaction with the experience goes down. When we do use our devices at festivals it doesn’t <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/333324705_Going_Mobile_TTRA_2018_Halifax_submission_revised">affect our satisfaction</a> with the event if we are using our phones for festival-related activities like looking at the festival schedule, the venue map or even texting to meet up with friends who are joining us. </p>
<p>So is it time to ditch our phones? We know that our phones offer us something we value but there are consequences to using them. The important take away is that we need to be intentional about how we integrate our phones into our lives.</p>
<h2>Tips to using your phone less</h2>
<p>This summer, when you wander down to your neighbourhood fair or head out to your favourite music festival consider whether or not you want to invite your phone along. If you do decide the benefits outweigh the costs there are <a href="https://medium.com/the-happy-startup-school/how-to-stop-getting-distracted-by-your-phone-c5e41fe25abc">some simple things you can do to help you stay engaged in the festival experience</a> and not be distracted by your phone. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/277282/original/file-20190530-69051-1mbahyg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/277282/original/file-20190530-69051-1mbahyg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/277282/original/file-20190530-69051-1mbahyg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/277282/original/file-20190530-69051-1mbahyg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/277282/original/file-20190530-69051-1mbahyg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/277282/original/file-20190530-69051-1mbahyg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/277282/original/file-20190530-69051-1mbahyg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">If you are going to use your phone, turn off work notifications!</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Unsplash</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><strong>Turn off work notifications</strong></p>
<p>Selectively turn off notifications. While you might decide it’s worth it to get a text from your friends that you want to meet up with while you are enjoying an event, it might not be worth it to get an email notification that your boss isn’t pleased.</p>
<p><strong>Hide apps you don’t need</strong></p>
<p>Reorganize your screens. It can be helpful to have the festival ticket and program information on your phone but all the other icons might tempt you to focus on your phone than your experience. Put the apps you want to access while at the event on your main screen and hide the rest on later screens.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/277288/original/file-20190530-69079-y6n6p4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=491%2C1077%2C4604%2C2569&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/277288/original/file-20190530-69079-y6n6p4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/277288/original/file-20190530-69079-y6n6p4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/277288/original/file-20190530-69079-y6n6p4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/277288/original/file-20190530-69079-y6n6p4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/277288/original/file-20190530-69079-y6n6p4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/277288/original/file-20190530-69079-y6n6p4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Consider running wild and free at this summer’s music festivals – without your phone.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Matty Adame/ Unsplash</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><strong>Refrain from insta-posting on social media</strong></p>
<p>Wait to post. It’s fun to share your experience with your extended network but consider waiting until you return home. Sharing the memories captured on your phone after the experience gives you an opportunity to reflect on the day and prevents you from being distracted by other people’s posts while you are at the event. </p>
<p>Consider not posting any images of your experience to social media at all — you might find it leads to more conversations with people when they ask about your weekend or summer. Often, once people have seen your post they assume they already know how your weekend was, robbing you of the opportunity to share your experience with them. </p>
<p><strong>Allocate specific phone time</strong></p>
<p>Make time. Rather than checking your phone whenever the urge strikes consider dedicating specific times or locations to check your phone. Some performers have started using <a href="https://www.overyondr.com/howitworks">services like Yondr to lock people out of their phones</a> requiring them to leave the performance before checking their phones. </p>
<p>In discussing her book <a href="http://www.catherine-price.com/how-to-break-up-with-your-phone"><em>How to Break up with your Phone</em></a>, journalist Catherine Price highlights the fact that <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/133-catherine-price-redefining-your-relationship-your/id1087147821?i=1000410454827&l=fr%20.">our lives are what we need to be paying attention to</a>. What is it that you want to pay attention to the next time you attend a festival?</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/116946/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Christine Van Winkle receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.
Christine is the President of the Travel and Tourism Research Association - Canada Chapter</span></em></p>The habit of using our phones while at a summer music festival can negatively impact our experiences.Christine Van Winkle, Professor, University of ManitobaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1169372019-05-16T11:56:38Z2019-05-16T11:56:38ZHow to break our bad online security habits – with a flashing cyber nudge<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/274645/original/file-20190515-60537-1ubxp8y.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-illustration/conceptual-digital-image-lock-on-circuit-239458390?src=qJCl9GVRIJ7wFP8e4CCNlQ-1-84">Shutterstock/ESB Professional</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The number of cyber attacks is estimated <a href="https://www.accenture.com/us-en/insights/security/cost-cybercrime-study">to have risen by 67%</a> over the last five years, with the majority of these data breaches being <a href="https://www.baesystems.com/en/cybersecurity/article/new-bae-systems-research-reveals-human-error-still-major-vulnerability-in-network-security">traced back to human error</a>. </p>
<p>The potential risks of such attacks are vast and can have a serious impact on both organisations and individuals. But protecting ourselves against cyber security threats can be extremely complicated. </p>
<p>Not only is the technology we use on a daily basis getting more complex, but attackers are constantly finding new ways to bypass security measures. </p>
<p>Yet staying up to date with safety measures and new devices is not always practical. Many people are exhausted and turned off by seemingly endless reports of data breaches in the news – an effect referred to as “<a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/321582051_The_role_of_privacy_fatigue_in_online_privacy_behavior">privacy fatigue</a>”. </p>
<p>They can become weary of installing software updates, updating privacy settings or changing passwords – or simply fear that such precautions are pointless. </p>
<p>Efforts to combat this within organisations often involves providing members of employees with relevant training sessions. But such training can quickly become obsolete, or simply forgotten. </p>
<p>Workers also tend to be busy. When people are trying to complete other tasks, they might not remember to stay secure, particularly when doing so makes their job more difficult or time consuming. </p>
<p><a href="https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/6630017">Research has shown</a> that when computers were fitted with proximity sensors (which automatically log users out when they move away from the machine) users began placing cups over the sensors to disable them. </p>
<p>The intention had been to improve security, but in practice created what felt like a disproportionate burden for the user – in this case, having to repeatedly log back in, even after only briefly moving away from their work station. </p>
<p>Cyber security threats often take advantage of this reality. Phishing emails, for instance, frequently convey a degree of urgency or time pressure. This can result in a greater risk of clicking on a malicious link and giving away personal or private information. The busier someone is, the <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1071581918303628">more likely they are to act</a> without thinking. </p>
<p>When people are too busy and too distracted to act securely, one way of resolving this may be to exploit their “automatic processes” – their habits, or actions they take without really thinking. </p>
<p>If people can be successfully “nudged” in this way, they could end up becoming substantially more resistant to cyber attacks. <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/278405715_Beyond_Self-Tracking_and_Reminders_Designing_Smartphone_Apps_That_Support_Habit_Formation">Research into people’s habits</a> has highlighted that “contextual cues” (events, physical items) can help to prompt particular behaviours. </p>
<p>Gadgets like activity trackers use similar cues – such as vibrating when the user has been stationary for too long – to try and increase activity levels. </p>
<p>Prompts that attempt to encourage cyber security behaviours in a similar way are common. But these approaches often fail because people will typically cancel, ignore or work around such alerts, <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/221519020_SuperBreak_Using_Interactivity_to_Enhance_Ergonomic_Typing_Breaks">particularly if they interrupt another task</a>. When people are working on a computer, they find pop-up boxes or notifications frustrating and often click “yes” or “okay” without thinking about it.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/new-chip-to-aid-disease-screening-7393">New chip to aid disease screening</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Instead, using devices external to the computer (but on the desk) can allow reminders to stay in someone’s periphery, and possibly increase the chances they will act on them. Using soft lights provides an opportunity to try and change people’s behaviour in ways that are less “aggressive” or annoying. </p>
<h2>Seeing the light</h2>
<p>The <a href="https://learn.adafruit.com/adafruit-circuit-playground-express/overview">Adafruit Circuit Playground</a> is a small electronic piece of kit which can be programmed to display different coloured lights in different configurations or patterns. The idea is that it will sit next to someone’s computer and the lights will subtly nudge the user to lock their computer screen (if they forget to) as they leave their desk. </p>
<p>It can be connected to a variety of sensors that detect a person’s movement, which will effectively trigger the soft lights (or a gentle sound or vibration) to come on and then (hopefully) help to encourage the person to develop a new habit, such as locking a screen, changing a password, or updating their privacy settings. </p>
<p>These kind of nudges can be less disruptive to a person’s workload (or current task), and effectively remind them to do something. There is <a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Nudge-Improving-Decisions-Health-Happiness/dp/0141040017">evidence that gentle prompts</a> such as these have had positive impacts on people’s behaviour.</p>
<p>At a time when people are increasingly distracted, exhausted, and threatened by data breaches, the need to safeguard against threats is greater than ever. <a href="https://survey.zohopublic.eu/zs/L8B8SN">Exploring new approaches</a> to “nudging” people’s behaviour could be a solution that helps to reduce our vulnerability to security threats – creating safer work and home environments for everyone.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/116937/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Emily Collins receives funding from the Home Office. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Joanne Hinds receives funding from the Home Office.</span></em></p>Humans are the weak link in cyber security. But there may be a solution to making us safer, using the technology of exercise and lifestyle appsEmily Collins, Research Associate in Human Factors of Cyber Security, University of BathJoanne Hinds, Research Associate, University of BathLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1085752019-01-08T11:39:16Z2019-01-08T11:39:16ZWhat’s behind our appetite for self-destruction?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/252509/original/file-20190104-32148-1z0p5uh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">There seems be an attractive quality to things that are ostensibly unhealthy or dangerous.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/revolver-loaded-cigarette-concept-selfdestruction-nicotine-1099376930?src=IYGKvT09mwbSvoRrsLvyfA-1-72">Alisusha/Shutterstock.com</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Each new year, people vow to put an end to self-destructive habits like smoking, overeating or overspending.</p>
<p>And how many times have we learned of someone – a celebrity, a friend or a loved one – who committed some self-destructive act that seemed to defy explanation? Think of the criminal <a href="https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/12-years-jail-bank-manager-2367077">who leaves a trail of evidence</a>, perhaps with the hope of getting caught, or the politician who wins an election, <a href="https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/bellingham-student-embroiled-in-rep-weiner-twitter-scandal/">only to start sexting</a> someone likely to expose him. </p>
<p>Why do they do it? </p>
<p>Edgar Allan Poe, one of America’s greatest – and most self-destructive – writers, had some thoughts on the subject. He even had a name for the phenomenon: “perverseness.” Psychologists would later take the baton from Poe and attempt to decipher this enigma of the human psyche. </p>
<h2>Irresistible depravity</h2>
<p>In one of his lesser-known works, “<a href="https://www.eapoe.org/works/tales/impc.htm">The Imp of the Perverse</a>,” Poe argues that knowing something is wrong can be “the one unconquerable force” that makes us do it. </p>
<p>It seems that the source of this psychological insight was Poe’s own life experience. Orphaned before he was three years old, he had few advantages. But despite his considerable literary talents, he consistently managed to make his lot even worse. </p>
<p>He frequently alienated editors and other writers, even accusing poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow of plagiarism in what has come to be known as the “<a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=TevIJKwqWPMC&pg=PA210&lpg=PA210&dq=poe+plagiarism+longfellow&source=bl&ots=3w6dR6MLhK&sig=MzGhVaXkN0dMGJT91S58rcPBt6Y&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjznsj-pdLfAhUq54MKHbrOBIE4ChDoATAJegQIChAB#v=onepage&q=poe%20plagiarism%20longfellow&f=false">Longfellow war</a>.” During important moments, he seemed to implode: On a trip to Washington, D.C. to secure support for a proposed magazine and perhaps a government job, he apparently drank too much and <a href="https://www.eapoe.org/works/ostlttrs/pl661c05.htm">made a fool of himself</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/252510/original/file-20190104-32124-lvaic9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/252510/original/file-20190104-32124-lvaic9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/252510/original/file-20190104-32124-lvaic9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=840&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/252510/original/file-20190104-32124-lvaic9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=840&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/252510/original/file-20190104-32124-lvaic9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=840&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/252510/original/file-20190104-32124-lvaic9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1055&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/252510/original/file-20190104-32124-lvaic9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1055&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/252510/original/file-20190104-32124-lvaic9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1055&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">According to Edgar Allen Poe, knowing something is wrong can make it irresistible.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Edgar_Allan_Poe_daguerreotype_crop.png">Wikimedia Commons</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>After nearly two decades of scraping out a living as an editor and earning little income from his poetry and fiction, Poe finally achieved a breakthrough with “<a href="https://www.eapoe.org/works/editions/raop.htm">The Raven</a>,” which became an international sensation after its publication in 1845. </p>
<p>But when given the opportunity to give a reading in Boston and capitalize on this newfound fame, Poe didn’t read a new poem, as requested.</p>
<p>Instead, he reprised a poem from his youth: the long-winded, esoteric and dreadfully boring “<a href="https://www.eapoe.org/works/poems/aaraafc.htm">Al Aaraaf</a>,” renamed “The Messenger Star.” </p>
<p>As one newspaper <a href="https://www.eapoe.org/papers/misc1921/tplgc08b.htm">reported</a>, “it was not appreciated by the audience,” evidenced by “their uneasiness and continual exits in numbers at a time.” </p>
<p>Poe’s literary career stalled for the remaining four years of his short life.</p>
<h2>Freud’s ‘death drive’</h2>
<p>While “perverseness” wrecked Poe’s life and career, it nonetheless inspired his literature. </p>
<p>It figures prominently in “<a href="https://www.eapoe.org/works/tales/blcatd.htm">The Black Cat</a>,” in which the narrator executes his beloved cat, explaining, “I…hung it with the tears streaming from my eyes, and with the bitterest remorse at my heart…hung it because I knew that in so doing I was committing a sin – a deadly sin that would so jeopardise my immortal soul as to place it – if such a thing were possible – even beyond the reach of the infinite mercy of the Most Merciful and Most Terrible God.”</p>
<p>Why would a character knowingly commit “a deadly sin”? Why would someone destroy something that he loved?</p>
<p>Was Poe onto something? Did he possess a penetrating insight into the counterintuitive nature of human psychology? </p>
<p>A half-century after Poe’s death, Sigmund Freud wrote of a universal and innate “death drive” in humans, which he called “Thanatos” and first introduced in his landmark 1919 essay “<a href="https://www.libraryofsocialscience.com/assets/pdf/freud_beyond_the_pleasure_principle.pdf">Beyond the Pleasure Principle</a>.” </p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/252511/original/file-20190104-32130-1mvlw2z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/252511/original/file-20190104-32130-1mvlw2z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/252511/original/file-20190104-32130-1mvlw2z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=852&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/252511/original/file-20190104-32130-1mvlw2z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=852&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/252511/original/file-20190104-32130-1mvlw2z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=852&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/252511/original/file-20190104-32130-1mvlw2z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1071&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/252511/original/file-20190104-32130-1mvlw2z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1071&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/252511/original/file-20190104-32130-1mvlw2z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1071&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Sigmund Freud wrote of a universal death drive, which he dubbed ‘Thanatos.’</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/66/Sigmund-freud-400399_1280.jpg">Wikimedia Commons</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1745-8315.2009.00187.x">Many believe</a> Thanatos refers to unconscious psychological urges toward self-destruction, manifested in the kinds of inexplicable behavior shown by Poe and – in extreme cases – in suicidal thinking.</p>
<p>In the early 1930s, physicist Albert Einstein wrote to Freud to ask his thoughts on how further war might be prevented. <a href="http://www.public.asu.edu/%7Ejmlynch/273/documents/FreudEinstein.pdf">In his response</a>, Freud wrote that Thanatos “is at work in every living creature and is striving to bring it to ruin and to reduce life to its original condition of inanimate matter” and referred to it as a “death instinct.” </p>
<p>To Freud, Thanatos was an innate biological process with significant mental and emotional consequences – a response to, and a way to relieve, unconscious psychological pressure. </p>
<h2>Toward a modern understanding</h2>
<p>In the 1950s, the psychology field underwent the <a href="https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/cognitive-science/">“cognitive revolution</a>,” in which researchers started exploring, in experimental settings, how the mind operates, from decision-making to conceptualization to deductive reasoning.</p>
<p>Self-defeating behavior came to be considered less a cathartic response to unconscious drives and more the unintended result of deliberate calculus.</p>
<p>In 1988, psychologists Roy Baumeister and Steven Scher identified <a href="http://psycnet.apa.org/record/1988-35696-001">three main types of self-defeating behavior</a>: primary self-destruction, or behavior designed to harm the self; counterproductive behavior, which has good intentions but ends up being accidentally ineffective and self-destructive; and trade-off behavior, which is known to carry risk to the self but is judged to carry potential benefits that outweigh those risks. </p>
<p>Think of drunk driving. If you knowingly consume too much alcohol and get behind the wheel with the intent to get arrested, that’s primary self-destruction. If you drive drunk because you believe you’re less intoxicated than your friend, and – to your surprise – get arrested, that’s counterproductive. And if you know you’re too drunk to drive, but you drive anyway because the alternatives seem too burdensome, that’s a trade-off.</p>
<p>Baumeister and Scher’s review concluded that primary self-destruction has actually rarely been demonstrated in scientific studies. </p>
<p>Rather, the self-defeating behavior observed in such research is better categorized, in most cases, as trade-off behavior or counterproductive behavior. Freud’s “death drive” would actually correspond most closely to counterproductive behavior: The “urge” toward destruction isn’t consciously experienced.</p>
<p>Finally, as psychologist Todd Heatherton <a href="https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/abs/10.1146/annurev.psych.121208.131616">has shown</a>, the modern neuroscientific literature on self-destructive behavior most frequently focuses on the functioning of the prefrontal cortex, which is associated with planning, problem solving, self-regulation and judgment. </p>
<p>When this part of the brain is underdeveloped or damaged, it can result in behavior that appears irrational and self-defeating. There are more subtle differences in the development of this part of the brain: Some people simply find it easier than others to engage consistently in positive goal-directed behavior.</p>
<p>Poe certainly didn’t understand self-destructive behavior the way we do today. </p>
<p>But he seems to have recognized something perverse in his own nature. Before his untimely death in 1849, he reportedly chose an enemy, the editor Rufus Griswold, as his literary executor. </p>
<p>True to form, Griswold wrote a damning obituary and “<a href="https://www.eapoe.org/geninfo/poegrisw.htm">Memoir</a>,” in which he alludes to madness, blackmail and more, helping to formulate an image of Poe that has tainted his reputation to this day.</p>
<p>Then again, maybe that’s exactly what Poe – driven by his own personal imp – wanted.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/108575/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Edgar Allen Poe, Sigmund Freud and cognitive scientists have all wrestled with the human tendency to behave in ways that are irrational and self-defeating.Mark Canada, Executive Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs, Indiana UniversityChristina Downey, Professor of Psychology, Indiana UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/903582018-02-01T09:37:13Z2018-02-01T09:37:13ZTrying to give up a bad habit? The worst thing you can do is attempt not to think about it<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/204097/original/file-20180130-38229-sm25qz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/download/confirm/747034402?src=UpQyfi6lcNQwkzC2N8gdBQ-1-27&size=medium_jpg">HBRH/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Let me set you a task. For the next minute, I want you to <em>not</em> think about Donald Trump. You must block all thoughts of Trump from your mind. </p>
<p>How did you get on?</p>
<p>If trying not to think about Trump increased your thoughts about him, then you experienced the paradoxical effect of what psychologists call <a href="https://www.guilford.com/books/White-Bears-and-Other-Unwanted-Thoughts/Daniel-Wegner/9780898622232/reviews">thought suppression</a>. The process of trying to block thoughts from your mind can unintentionally heighten their recurrence and make you doubt your ability to control them.</p>
<p>Given that people often use thought suppression to try and stop bad habits, such as smoking or eating too much, you can see why it might be a problem. In a <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0195666307003674">study</a> on thought suppression, participants who were instructed to block out thoughts of chocolate subsequently ate more chocolate than participants who were told they could think of anything or were instructed to specifically think about chocolate.</p>
<p>So, dieters be warned. Don’t try and suppress thoughts about food. You may end up consuming more.</p>
<p>The same effects have been found in studies on <a href="http://psycnet.apa.org/record/2002-01321-004">alcohol</a>. Participants who actively avoid thinking about alcohol crave alcohol more and end up drinking more than those who don’t suppress their thoughts.</p>
<p>Smoking is one of the hardest habits to quit. People become physically and psychologically addicted to tobacco. Again, if you want to quit smoking, stop suppressing thoughts about smoking.</p>
<p>In a <a href="http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0956797610378687">study</a> following smokers over a three-week period, researchers found that people who tried to block out thoughts about smoking smoked more cigarettes than those who actively thought about smoking. In fact, smokers with a greater tendency to suppress thoughts, of any kind, find it harder to <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0306460300001404">quit</a> smoking.</p>
<p>Even <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1090513807001171">sexual desire</a> seems to be affected by thought suppression. In a study conducted at the University of California, Los Angeles, participants, who were in a romantic relationship, were shown pictures of attractive people and asked to rate and write about why the person was attractive. After this, they were asked to write a short essay about feeling sexual desire for their partner while suppressing thoughts of the attractive person in the picture. As predicted, they reported an increase of thoughts about the attractive other. </p>
<p>Interestingly, those who wrote a short essay about feeling love for their romantic partner had fewer thoughts about the attractive person in the picture after suppression. So maybe love buffers the effects of thought suppression.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/204218/original/file-20180131-131744-sdpdqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/204218/original/file-20180131-131744-sdpdqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/204218/original/file-20180131-131744-sdpdqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/204218/original/file-20180131-131744-sdpdqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/204218/original/file-20180131-131744-sdpdqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/204218/original/file-20180131-131744-sdpdqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/204218/original/file-20180131-131744-sdpdqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Try not to think about this guy, for one minute.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/download/confirm/636139745?src=SvwuqpTDBHSiK-H4KQaxaQ-1-6&size=medium_jpg">Joseph Sohm/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Whatever you do, do nothing</h2>
<p>Despite the ineffectiveness of suppressing thoughts, most people still use it when trying to quit a bad habit, or, at least, gain control of it. So what is the alternative? Well, the simple answer is not to use it.</p>
<p>Accept that suppressing thoughts is counterproductive. It not only leads to more thoughts about the forbidden thing, it also makes you crave it all the more, and can lead to negative moods.</p>
<p>The second thing to do with negative thoughts of this nature is to not get rid of the thought, but change your response to it. Metacognitive therapy, developed by <a href="https://www.research.manchester.ac.uk/portal/adrian.wells.html">Adrian Wells</a> at the University of Manchester, employs some specific therapeutic techniques to achieve this. One such technique is called “detached mindfulness”. </p>
<p>It involves having awareness of thoughts, without responding to them with more thinking, attempting to control or suppress them, or acting on them. In essence, by leaving a thought alone it is more likely to disappear quickly than if you try to block it out.</p>
<p>So giving up trying to block out thoughts of chocolate, cigarettes, alcohol and sex, may help us to manage and reduce these behaviours. You never know, it may also bring about a reduction in Donald Trump related thoughts.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/90358/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Robin Bailey does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Suppressing thoughts about cigarettes, alcohol and chocolate are only going to make you crave them more.Robin Bailey, Senior Lecturer in Psychological Therapies, University of Central LancashireLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/591082016-05-13T10:46:06Z2016-05-13T10:46:06ZMoving house can make you healthier, happier – and greener, too<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/122447/original/image-20160513-32145-wbas21.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Time to ditch those bad habits?</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.shutterstock.com/pic-369484907/stock-photo-bad-habits.html?src=js9SczLop8CPfFA4mVOPwg-1-5">www.shutterstock.com/Taher Basrai Photography</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/national-travel-survey-2012">vast majority of people</a> in the UK still commute to work by car rather than by using public transport or cycling. Obviously this has serious consequences for the environment: cars are <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/transport-statistics-great-britain-2013">a major source</a> of greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution. But changing the way people commute can not only help the environment, it can make them <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-35812984">healthier and happier, too</a>. </p>
<p>When we think about the choices that workers make when travelling to their jobs, we might assume that they make informed decisions, and that giving them new information to challenge their currently held attitudes could change their behaviour. For example, tell a person that it is not only quicker and cheaper for them to cycle to work, but it is also better for the environment too, and you might expect them immediately to hop on their bike. </p>
<p>In reality, however, it is extremely difficult to change how people travel to work: car users resist change and <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1369847814000837">fear losing their autonomy</a> if they switch to another mode of travel – so far, interventions to reduce car use have <a href="https://ijbnpa.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12966-014-0133-9">had limited success</a>.</p>
<p>One reason why it is so difficult for people to give up their cars is that the act of commuting is largely habitual. Most of us get behind the wheel and drive to our jobs via the same route day in, day out, without a thought. </p>
<p>Previous research has shown that habits can override the <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1369847808000727">best of our intentions</a>. Even people with pro-environmental views who would like to give up driving may find it difficult to break their habit, particularly when travelling by car to their place work has been ingrained over a long period of time. </p>
<p>Most of our daily behaviours, including commuting, are carried out in the <a href="http://psycnet.apa.org/psycinfo/2002-08203-004">same time and place</a>. Repeating behaviours in the same context over and over again makes us associate the behaviour with that context. A change in context may therefore help to disrupt a habit.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/122450/original/image-20160513-32141-19tjkcv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/122450/original/image-20160513-32141-19tjkcv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/122450/original/image-20160513-32141-19tjkcv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/122450/original/image-20160513-32141-19tjkcv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/122450/original/image-20160513-32141-19tjkcv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/122450/original/image-20160513-32141-19tjkcv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/122450/original/image-20160513-32141-19tjkcv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Moving home is the best time to initiate habit change.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.shutterstock.com/pic-370144871/stock-photo-man-walking-and-carrying-his-bike-over-a-bridge-he-is-wearing-an-helmet-and-cycling-clothes-on.html?src=81yb9UraLXt5Lyv5nlzTcA-1-10">www.shutterstock.com/William Perugini</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Changing lanes</h2>
<p>In a previous study, we found that when an organisation moved to a new office, their employees’ travel habits weakened. This <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/behavioural-insights/2014/nov/25/wwf-employees-drive-work-hope-for-rest-behaviour-change">effect was seen for everyone</a>, regardless of whether they changed the way they travelled to work or not. This suggests that people re-evaluate the way they travel when it is no longer triggered by the same familiar context. </p>
<p>The psychologist <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/bas-verplanken-11393">Bas Verplanken</a> thinks that moving home is the <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0272494407000898">best time to start a new habit</a>: it provides a window of opportunity where people can shift their actions in line with how they would like to behave. To test this idea, he conducted a survey among staff working at a university in England. He found that people who had recently moved house were less likely to travel by car, and that this effect was strongest for people with pro-environmental views.</p>
<p>In <a href="http://www.cardiff.ac.uk/news/view/265969-breaking-bad-habits">our recent research</a>, we wanted to see whether this was the case for the whole of the UK. We analysed the <a href="https://www.understandingsociety.ac.uk/">Understanding Society survey</a>, with data from 18,053 individuals working across the country. Having first looked at how long people had lived at their current address and how they chose to travel to work, we found that people who had recently moved were far less likely to commute by car than those who had lived for longer at the same address.</p>
<p>We then examined whether people’s environmental attitudes made a difference. We found that people with strong pro-environmental attitudes were less likely to commute to work by car, and that this effect was stronger if they had recently moved home. The effect was short-lived, however: this difference in behaviour was only found during the first six months of a person living in a new house, after which commuters appeared to lapse back into old habits.</p>
<p>The study shows that major life changes, such as moving home, offer an excellent opportunity for people to break their old habits and reconsider the choices they make. </p>
<p>This is good news for policy makers, who could use this break to deliver key information at a time when people are most ready to engage with a new behaviour, and encourage them to maintain healthier and sustainable choices for longer. A recent experiment also found that an intervention to promote several sustainable behaviours can be more effective for people who have <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0272494415300487">recently moved home</a>, and this principle could be applied to a range of different topics such as promoting healthy eating or exercising.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/59108/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Gregory Thomas receives funding from the ESRC, and a Scientific Advisor to Nudjed Ltd on behaviour change methods.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Wouter Poortinga receives funding from the ESRC, National Institute for Health Research, the Leverhulme Trust, Welsh Government, and Carmarthenshire County Council. </span></em></p>It’s the best time to make a fresh start.Gregory Thomas, Research associate, Cardiff UniversityWouter Poortinga, Professor of Environmental Psychology, Cardiff UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.