We're all focused on how creative and how amazing and how wonderful human minds are.

人們都專注於人類的創造力和思想有多奇妙。

Because your dogs learn through habits,

因為狗是透過習慣來學習，

they were viewed as too limited to apply to human performance.

牠們的行為被認為過於侷限，與人類不同。

And it's not how we think about our behavior, right?

人類不認為自己的行為模式是如此，對吧？

Habits don't involve much conscious thought,

習慣並沒有涉及很多有意識的思考。

your dog doesn't have much conscious thought.

你的狗並沒有思考太多。

I know it seems like they do, but they don't.

我知道牠們看起來有，但沒有。

But people are pretty simple as well.

可是人類也挺簡單的。

In research, we're able to show that people act on habits much more than we're aware of.

研究顯示，人們按習慣行事的比例比我們想像的要多得多。

My name's Wendy Wood, and I'm a behavioral scientist.

我叫溫蒂·伍德，是名行為科學家。

I do research on habits and why they're so difficult to change.

我研究習慣及為何習慣如此難以改變。

Back in the 1980s,

20 世紀 80 年代，

some researchers wanted to convince people in a four-story office building to start using the stairs.

一些研究人員想說服一棟四層辦公樓裡的人們開始走樓梯。

So they started just the way all of us would-

所以他們試了大家都會想到的方法，

they started trying to convince people.

也就是試圖說服人們。

They put up signs:

他們貼標示，寫著：

"It's good to take the stairs."

「走樓梯是好事」

"It's good for your health."

「對健康有好處」

"It's bad to take the elevator.

「坐電梯不好」

Wastes energy!"

「浪費能源！」

But the signs had no effect.

但這些標示沒有任何效果。

So, these very creative researchers decided,

因此，這些非常有創意的研究人員決定，

"Okay, let's try something different."

「好吧，我們試點不同的方式。」

They slowed the closing of the elevator door by 16 seconds.

他們將電梯關門時間拉長至 16 秒。

And that was enough to dissuade people.

這就足以勸阻人們了。

They reduced the elevator use by a third.

電梯使用率減少了三分之一。

And the wonderful thing about the study is,

而這項研究的奇妙之處在於，

when they put the elevator door back to its original speed,

當研究員將電梯調回原本的速度，

people kept taking the stairs because they had formed a habit to take the stairs,

人們還是繼續走樓梯，因為他們已經養成了習慣。

and they just stuck with it.

習慣留了下來。

And it's an example of what psychologists have called 'Friction'-

心理學家稱之為「心理摩擦力」

barriers to performing a behavior.

也就是執行某行為的阻礙。

Distance, time, and effort are all friction.

距離、時間和努力都屬於「心理摩擦力」。

Friction is really important in determining what behaviors we repeat,

「心理摩擦力」是決定我們重複哪些行為的重要因素，

and so what behaviors become a habit.

進而影響哪些行為會成為習慣。

We think we go to the gym because we're concerned about fitness,

人們認為自己去健身房是因為在意身材，

we're determined, we exert willpower.

是因為自己有決心及意志力。

So it feels like that's a good way to start to change our habits, right?

感覺是個開始改變自身習慣的好辦法，對嗎？

Exert self-control, and our habits will then change.

發揮自制力，習慣就會隨之改變。

But it doesn't work that way.

但並不是這樣運作的。

Our habits are stored in a memory system that we don't have access to, we can't fuss with.

人的習慣儲存在一個我們無法進入的記憶系統中，思慮無法觸及的地方。

It's a way of securing the most important information, and protecting it from change.

這是種保護重要資訊的方式，讓其不會被改變。

And so, there's no way you can change that habit memory except through repetition of other behaviors.

因此，這種習慣記憶是無法改變的，除非你重複其他行為。

We repeat a behavior in a given context in the same way,

我們在特定環境中，以同樣方式重複一種行為，

and we get some reward.

然後得到獎勵。

When we get a reward, our brain releases dopamine.

得到獎勵時，人的大腦會釋放多巴胺。

Rewards get us to repeat behaviors and form habits.

獎勵促使我們重複行為並形成習慣。

One of the really important things about behavior change is you have to work with what's around you.

想改變行為，一件重要的事是必須善用周圍事物。

Habits reorganize the way we store information in memory.

習慣會重組我們儲存記憶的方式。

They form these associations between contexts.

習慣會將前後事件聯繫在一起。

Professional chefs set up their stations before they start,

在開始下廚前，專業廚師會先佈置好工作台，

making sure they have all of the ingredients,

確保所有食材、

all of the utensils, pots and pans are there,

器具、鍋碗瓢盆都在，

they've read through the recipe.

且自己已通讀食譜。

And it's a great metaphor for all of us when we go about changing our behavior.

對於行為改變，這對所有人都是個很好的借鏡。

We really need an environment that would make it easier to actually achieve our goals.

我們需要一個能讓實現目標更容易的環境。

There's actually evidence that our habits help give us meaning in life.

實際上，證據表明，習慣有助賦予生活意義。

Rituals have a habit component.

儀式就有習慣的成分在。

Some of the rituals we perform really are kind of automatic and habitual.

一些儀式的舉行是機械化且習慣性的。

Professional athletes provide some of the best examples of people who effectively use rituals.

職業運動員們就是有效利用儀式的最好例子。

Baseball players are really well known for this,

棒球選手在這方面很著名。

of having patterns of things they do before they go to bat.

上場前，他們會有自己的儀式。

And what rituals give high-level athletes is a sense of control

儀式給予了這些高水平運動員們一種控制感，

because they have something they repeat,

他們有屬於自己重複的模式，

they do it successfully.

成功的模式。

So it really does give them a sense of confidence.

這能給他們一種信心。

When we are in environments where we know what to do and we feel comfortable doing them,

處於習慣的環境中，做著熟悉的流程，

it allows us to effectively multitask.

能使我們有效率地一心多用。

When we've practiced one thing enough so we don't have to think about it,

練習一件事情足夠多次，不必思考就能執行時，

then we can do other things-

就有心力去做其他事，

we can make sense out of our world.

去理解這個世界。