Russell A. Poldrack

Usually habits are a good thing. We notice them when they're a bad thing, you know, when we have bad habits that we want to get rid of. You know, one really important thing that neuroscientists know about habits is just how fundamentally important they are, and that's why our brains are kind of built to make them.

Usually habits are a good thing. We notice them when they're a bad thing, you know, when we have bad habits that we want to get rid of. You know, one really important thing that neuroscientists know about habits is just how fundamentally important they are, and that's why our brains are kind of built to make them.

Usually habits are a good thing. We notice them when they're a bad thing, you know, when we have bad habits that we want to get rid of. You know, one really important thing that neuroscientists know about habits is just how fundamentally important they are, and that's why our brains are kind of built to make them.

How do you define it in your world? I guess I think of a habit as something that we do that's kind of triggered by the world without us thinking about it. And, you know, so we there's lots of things that we do every day in our behavior that we don't really think about at all. Right. Take driving. Right.

How do you define it in your world? I guess I think of a habit as something that we do that's kind of triggered by the world without us thinking about it. And, you know, so we there's lots of things that we do every day in our behavior that we don't really think about at all. Right. Take driving. Right.

How do you define it in your world? I guess I think of a habit as something that we do that's kind of triggered by the world without us thinking about it. And, you know, so we there's lots of things that we do every day in our behavior that we don't really think about at all. Right. Take driving. Right.

You know, you get into your car and you have to press pedals and move levers and all these various things. And when you're first learning to drive a car, you have to think about all of those different things. Right. You know, which pedal is which, which is the brake, which is the gas. But if you've been driving for 20 years, you never think about which pedal is doing which thing, right?

You know, you get into your car and you have to press pedals and move levers and all these various things. And when you're first learning to drive a car, you have to think about all of those different things. Right. You know, which pedal is which, which is the brake, which is the gas. But if you've been driving for 20 years, you never think about which pedal is doing which thing, right?

You know, you get into your car and you have to press pedals and move levers and all these various things. And when you're first learning to drive a car, you have to think about all of those different things. Right. You know, which pedal is which, which is the brake, which is the gas. But if you've been driving for 20 years, you never think about which pedal is doing which thing, right?

You just get in the car and drive and you're thinking about where do I need to go and what's the traffic going to be like and all those sort of things. So habits are the things that our brains do to basically kind of offload us needing to think about all these things that kind of –

You just get in the car and drive and you're thinking about where do I need to go and what's the traffic going to be like and all those sort of things. So habits are the things that our brains do to basically kind of offload us needing to think about all these things that kind of –

You just get in the car and drive and you're thinking about where do I need to go and what's the traffic going to be like and all those sort of things. So habits are the things that our brains do to basically kind of offload us needing to think about all these things that kind of –

don't change in the world and usually habits are a good thing we we notice them when they're a bad thing you know when we have bad habits that we want to get rid of and we can't but um i think you know one really important thing that that neuroscientists know about habits is just how fundamentally important they are and that's why our brains are kind of built to make them

don't change in the world and usually habits are a good thing we we notice them when they're a bad thing you know when we have bad habits that we want to get rid of and we can't but um i think you know one really important thing that that neuroscientists know about habits is just how fundamentally important they are and that's why our brains are kind of built to make them

don't change in the world and usually habits are a good thing we we notice them when they're a bad thing you know when we have bad habits that we want to get rid of and we can't but um i think you know one really important thing that that neuroscientists know about habits is just how fundamentally important they are and that's why our brains are kind of built to make them

I think that's certainly true, that the habits that we talk the most about are the ones that have this emotional or what neuroscientists call incentive salience, that there's something in the world that we really want to get and it's almost like a craving or a powerful drive to do the thing.

I think that's certainly true, that the habits that we talk the most about are the ones that have this emotional or what neuroscientists call incentive salience, that there's something in the world that we really want to get and it's almost like a craving or a powerful drive to do the thing.

I think that's certainly true, that the habits that we talk the most about are the ones that have this emotional or what neuroscientists call incentive salience, that there's something in the world that we really want to get and it's almost like a craving or a powerful drive to do the thing.

And you're right that most of the habits that we have in the world, when I'm going to lock the door as I leave the house, I don't feel a craving to do that. But what we know is that it's actually the same machinery in our brains that creates the habit of locking your door when you leave and the habit of needing to go have another cigarette.

And you're right that most of the habits that we have in the world, when I'm going to lock the door as I leave the house, I don't feel a craving to do that. But what we know is that it's actually the same machinery in our brains that creates the habit of locking your door when you leave and the habit of needing to go have another cigarette.