Russell A. Poldrack

because you keep doing it it goes back to this idea that you know in general the brain is always trying to kind of automate as much as it can right and if you do something a lot that will tend to get automated so it might be you know either because of you know a particular personality quirk or just because of some experiences that a person has they start doing something and over time that thing becomes

because you keep doing it it goes back to this idea that you know in general the brain is always trying to kind of automate as much as it can right and if you do something a lot that will tend to get automated so it might be you know either because of you know a particular personality quirk or just because of some experiences that a person has they start doing something and over time that thing becomes

because you keep doing it it goes back to this idea that you know in general the brain is always trying to kind of automate as much as it can right and if you do something a lot that will tend to get automated so it might be you know either because of you know a particular personality quirk or just because of some experiences that a person has they start doing something and over time that thing becomes

more and more of a, you know, kind of a routine that they engage in or, you know, like anytime they're in this situation, they behave in that particular way. And often that's good because we don't have to think about how we're behaving in any particular situation, but sometimes it can lead to these sorts of, you know, bad behaviors.

more and more of a, you know, kind of a routine that they engage in or, you know, like anytime they're in this situation, they behave in that particular way. And often that's good because we don't have to think about how we're behaving in any particular situation, but sometimes it can lead to these sorts of, you know, bad behaviors.

more and more of a, you know, kind of a routine that they engage in or, you know, like anytime they're in this situation, they behave in that particular way. And often that's good because we don't have to think about how we're behaving in any particular situation, but sometimes it can lead to these sorts of, you know, bad behaviors.

That that's definitely true. You know, it's like you can't really read about how to play guitar, right, and be able to play guitar, you know, based on just that you needed it. It requires kind of, you know, personal experience and motivation and actually doing the thing because the you know, the systems in the brain that develop habits are.

That that's definitely true. You know, it's like you can't really read about how to play guitar, right, and be able to play guitar, you know, based on just that you needed it. It requires kind of, you know, personal experience and motivation and actually doing the thing because the you know, the systems in the brain that develop habits are.

That that's definitely true. You know, it's like you can't really read about how to play guitar, right, and be able to play guitar, you know, based on just that you needed it. It requires kind of, you know, personal experience and motivation and actually doing the thing because the you know, the systems in the brain that develop habits are.

are basically the same systems that allow us to kind of choose what we're doing from moment to moment. We call it the action selection system. It's basically determining, am I going to go left or right at this particular fork in the road? Am I going to pick the candy bar or the piece of fruit at the grocery store? Am I going to say something nice or something mean to this particular person?

are basically the same systems that allow us to kind of choose what we're doing from moment to moment. We call it the action selection system. It's basically determining, am I going to go left or right at this particular fork in the road? Am I going to pick the candy bar or the piece of fruit at the grocery store? Am I going to say something nice or something mean to this particular person?

are basically the same systems that allow us to kind of choose what we're doing from moment to moment. We call it the action selection system. It's basically determining, am I going to go left or right at this particular fork in the road? Am I going to pick the candy bar or the piece of fruit at the grocery store? Am I going to say something nice or something mean to this particular person?

The systems in our brain that let us do that are kind of fundamentally tied in with how habits are built.

The systems in our brain that let us do that are kind of fundamentally tied in with how habits are built.

The systems in our brain that let us do that are kind of fundamentally tied in with how habits are built.

That's exactly right. And so one of the things that people in the behavior change literature talk about is – something called a commitment device, which is basically a way of announcing your particular intention and having there be some kind of consequence

That's exactly right. And so one of the things that people in the behavior change literature talk about is – something called a commitment device, which is basically a way of announcing your particular intention and having there be some kind of consequence

That's exactly right. And so one of the things that people in the behavior change literature talk about is – something called a commitment device, which is basically a way of announcing your particular intention and having there be some kind of consequence

if you fail to uh to achieve it so for example um there's a there's a radio lab episode a while ago that talked about this woman named zelda gamsen who had been a kind of a like lifelong activist for racial equality and she really wanted to stop smoking and so basically um she at some point said to one of her friends if i ever smoke again i'm going to give 5 000 to the ku klux klan um

if you fail to uh to achieve it so for example um there's a there's a radio lab episode a while ago that talked about this woman named zelda gamsen who had been a kind of a like lifelong activist for racial equality and she really wanted to stop smoking and so basically um she at some point said to one of her friends if i ever smoke again i'm going to give 5 000 to the ku klux klan um