{"title":"Dissociable habits of response preparation versus response initiation","authors":"Yue Du, Adrian M. Haith","doi":"10.1038/s41562-025-02215-4","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p>Behaviours we repeat often tend to become habitual. The process of habit formation in humans is commonly studied in the context of learning an arbitrary association between stimuli and responses. Assessing whether or not this association becomes habitual usually involves testing either whether participants can withhold certain responses or whether participants can generate different responses to certain stimuli. However, studies using these two methods have yielded conflicting findings. Here we propose that this discrepancy arises because these approaches target distinct forms of habit associated with different components of action control: response initiation and response preparation, respectively. Through a series of experiments (total <i>n</i> = 215), along with computational models, we show that these two approaches indeed measure dissociable forms of habit. Our results illustrate that a given behaviour can become habitual in multiple, qualitatively different ways, with important implications for how habits can best be promoted or eliminated.</p>","PeriodicalId":19074,"journal":{"name":"Nature Human Behaviour","volume":"66 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":21.4000,"publicationDate":"2025-06-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Nature Human Behaviour","FirstCategoryId":"102","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41562-025-02215-4","RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"MULTIDISCIPLINARY SCIENCES","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Behaviours we repeat often tend to become habitual. The process of habit formation in humans is commonly studied in the context of learning an arbitrary association between stimuli and responses. Assessing whether or not this association becomes habitual usually involves testing either whether participants can withhold certain responses or whether participants can generate different responses to certain stimuli. However, studies using these two methods have yielded conflicting findings. Here we propose that this discrepancy arises because these approaches target distinct forms of habit associated with different components of action control: response initiation and response preparation, respectively. Through a series of experiments (total n = 215), along with computational models, we show that these two approaches indeed measure dissociable forms of habit. Our results illustrate that a given behaviour can become habitual in multiple, qualitatively different ways, with important implications for how habits can best be promoted or eliminated.
期刊介绍:
Nature Human Behaviour is a journal that focuses on publishing research of outstanding significance into any aspect of human behavior.The research can cover various areas such as psychological, biological, and social bases of human behavior.It also includes the study of origins, development, and disorders related to human behavior.The primary aim of the journal is to increase the visibility of research in the field and enhance its societal reach and impact.