Our digital habits

Duke University researchers calculate that more than 40 percent of the actions we take are governed by habit, not actual decisions. These range from the products you buy in the grocery store to when you snack. Habits are ingrained so deep in the brain that a patient with brain damage sitting in his living room can’t tell you where the kitchen is, but if he is hungry, he can get a jar of peanut butter out of the pantry.

Charles Duhigg, a reporter at the The New York Times, writes about how our habits shape us in his book “The Power of Habit.” Researchers now understand the structure of habits — cue, routine, reward. Duhigg’s book is about people who have learned to replace bad habits with good habits.

You can change your own personal habits. Leaving running shorts on the floor at night is a cue to run in the morning. If you have an afternoon snack craving, insert another routine.

It got me to thinking about our digital habits, such as frequently checking email or Twitter. How much do we do out of habit, and could we improve productivity by being more aware of the choices we make?