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Summary & key facts

Researchers followed people who wanted to build a new good habit for about three months using a smartphone app. Habit strength rose substantially over the 90 days, and the rise was larger for people who consistently did the target behavior. The researchers did not find that people’s self-control capacity helped predict how habits formed. The study started with 180 people and analyzed 146 who provided follow-up data (90 completed the final test).

Key facts:

• The study tracked habit formation over a 90-day period using daily measures delivered through a mobile app.
• Habit strength increased substantially over three months, especially when participants performed the desired behavior consistently.
• Self-control capacity did not appear to affect the habit formation process in this study (contrary to the researchers’ expectations).
• A total of 180 people took part in the first session; 90 people completed the post-measurement, and 146 participants who completed at least one follow-up habit assessment were included in the analyses.
• Participants’ mean age was 31.9 years (SD = 12.7), 118 of the analyzed participants were women, and ages ranged from 18 to 61.
• Participants were trying to form habits in areas like eating fruit or vegetables, exercising, drinking water, interpersonal behavior, saving money, or recycling.
• Participants took part for a range of 17 to 110 days (mean = 77.0 days, SD = 26.7).
• Initial habit strength was moderate (mean = 3.1, SD = 1.1) at the start of the study.

Abstract

When striving for long-term goals (e.g., healthy eating, saving money, reducing energy consumption, or maintaining interpersonal relationships), people often get in conflict with their short-term goals (e.g., enjoying tempting snacks, purchasing must-haves, getting warm, or watching YouTube video's). Previous research suggests that people who are successful in controlling their behavior in line with their long-term goals rely on effortless strategies, such as good habits. In the present study, we aimed to track how self-control capacity affects the development of good habits in real life over a period of 90 days. Results indicated that habit formation increased substantially over the course of three months, especially for participants who consistently performed the desired behavior during this time. Contrary to our expectations, however, self-control capacity did not seem to affect the habit formation process. Directions for future research on self-control and other potential moderators in the formation of good habits are discussed.

Topics

Behavioral Health and Interventions Environmental Education and Sustainability Impact of Technology on Adolescents

Categories

Applied Psychology Psychology Social Sciences

Tags

Affect (linguistics) Communication Consumption (sociology) Control (management) Developmental psychology Economics Habit Interpersonal communication Interpersonal relationship Longitudinal field Magnetic field Management Physics Psychology Quantum mechanics Self-control Social psychology Social science Sociology Term (time)