How habitual is everyday life? An ecological momentary assessment study

Abstract

Objective: Establishing to what extent everyday behaviors are habitual will help intervention developers understand whether and which specific behaviors can become habitual or may require habit disruption to enable adoption of desired behaviors. Previous estimates of the prevalence of habit in everyday life have not distinguished between habitual instigation, whereby habit triggers action selection of a target action, and habitual execution, whereby habit facilitates smooth performance of action. Methods and Measures: Participants (N = 105) from the UK and Australia completed an ecological momentary assessment study, in which they self-reported their current behavior, and to what extent that behavior was habitually instigated, habitually executed and intentional, 6 times daily over 7 days. Results: Most observed behaviors were habitually instigated (65%), habitually executed (88%), and aligned with intention (76%). Whether a person’s behavior was generally habitual or aligned with intention did not vary as a function of demographics. Exercise behaviors were more commonly habitually instigated, and less habitually executed, than other action types. Conclusion: Our findings illustrate the pervasive influence of habit on everyday life. We recommend that techniques conducive to forming new habits and disrupting old habits be built into behavior change interventions to maximize effectiveness.