By Dr. Joe Isbister

Over the past decade, the integration of neuroscience, technology and behavioural economics has led to a more nuanced and comprehensive understanding of the power of habit and the pivotal role that habit plays in behaviour change. It is all about different parts of the brain and how they work together. In particular, the synergy of the Prefrontal Cortex, the Basal Ganglia and neurotransmitters.

Check out the following video created by Los Angeles Pacific University, which neatly summarises the different aspects of habit formation and what happens in the brain when a habit develops.

As can be seen, habit formation primarily concerns interactions between the Prefrontal Cortex and the Basal Ganglia. The Prefrontal Cortex, the part of the brain responsible for decision-making and goal-setting, will initially chart a course of action. Over time, as the habit becomes more ingrained, the Basal Ganglia will become more active. The Basal Ganglia, responsible for motor control and procedural learning, will repeat a behaviour, and then neural pathways in the Basal Ganglia strengthen, helping to make the action more automatic.

The video also highlights the critical role of neurotransmitters (such as Dopamine). Dopamine is released when we experience pleasure and reward, strengthening the neural pathways associated with the habit. The rewarding sensation this provides encourages further repetition in the future, solidifying the habit over time. The interaction of these processes and mechanisms remains the same, no matter what the habit.

Armed with this knowledge, we can see more clearly why many of the techniques and strategies outlined within James Clear’s Atomic Habits work as well as they do. Take the habit loop as an example. James Clear explains that habits develop because they are triggered by a cue (noticing), which triggers a craving (wanting), which triggers the response (doing), and which activates the reward (liking). The more this process is repeated, the more the neural pathways are strengthened, and the more the Prefrontal Cortex becomes subservient to the Basal Ganglia. As James Clear puts it, “You become what you repeat”.

Considering this process, it immediately becomes clear how quickly, automatically and efficiently, the Basal Ganglia part of the brain ‘kicks in’ unless we engage our self-awareness (the Prefrontal Cortex bit). Indeed, knowing about the habit loop enables us to use this awareness to circumvent this process occurring in the first place. For example, armed with this knowledge, the Prefrontal Cortex aspect of our brain enables us to manipulate our environment to make good habits more prominent and bad habits more difficult.

We can leverage a Dopamine rush immediately after our desired behaviours by making habits more attractive and satisfying. By making a behaviour easy, we increase the likelihood of a neural pathway forming in the first place and allow repetition (to strengthen the neural pathway).

From a neurological perspective, we can see that the habit loop is tapping into and hacking your brain’s known pathways and reward systems. The exact same mechanism works in your brain when you smoke a cigarette or go for a run. Your brain does not differentiate or know the difference at a neurological level. We can let ourselves be the victim of this automated process or use it to our advantage to achieve any goal we consciously decide upon.

James Clear (author of Atomic Habits) emphasises the power of asking specific questions to yourself if you want to change a behaviour. Namely, how can I make it obvious? How can I make it attractive? How can I make it easy? How can I make it satisfying? When you understand the neuroscience of habit formation, you can see that these questions are tapping into underlying neurological questions. The neurological questions are: how can I take advantage of my Prefrontal Cortex planning and decision capabilities? How can I get the desired behaviour to form in the Basal Ganglia? How can I use Dopamine to drive and sustain my desired behaviour?

Understanding the neural mechanisms of habit formation also makes it clear why intentions alone are rarely sufficient. Whilst intentions can be helpful for direction setting and initially engaging in a behaviour, without a system of checks and balances in place, our best intentions are often overridden by more primal and automatic responses, which, if left unchecked, will become repeated and strengthen over time. However, we can bring the knowledge, techniques, and strategies advocated in Atomic Habits to our consciousness, giving our Prefrontal Cortex the advantage.

We can use the Prefrontal Cortex of our brain to help us design environments, create systems, and engage in specific behaviours that put us back in control, working in alignment with our goals while enjoying the neurotransmitter responses that occur in the process.

Contact us if you want to develop habits that can serve you more effectively at work.