Using temptation bundling to create lasting behaviour change.
Despite our best intentions to make use of the fresh start effect in setting new year’s resolutions and building better habits, for some of us (or arguably, most of us), the new year has come and gone together with our resolve.
It seems that the traditional reward-consequence tactic – often referred to as the carrot-and-stick approach - that we use as a motivation tool doesn’t do much in helping us create lasting behaviour change. Luckily, behavioural science offers a promising alternative to this carrot-and-stick approach that we might aim to try in 2023: temptation bundling.
Essentially, temptation bundling addresses the want vs should trade-off that we so often face in trying to form lasting habits. It involves pairing up behaviours that offer instant gratification (temptations) with activities/behaviours that offer delayed benefits and upfront costs (like most new year’s resolutions). In our daily lives, temptation bundling could look like only going out to your favourite spot for coffee (the temptation) when you commit to spending your time there answering emails (the upfront cost) or committing to only watching your favourite show while exercising at home.
In her research on behaviour change, Katy Milkman conducted a study in which participants were restricted to listening to their favourite audio books only while at the gym. The results showed that gym participation had increased by 51% as a result.
The principle also appears in New York Times bestselling book - Atomic Habits - as a practical way to boost your willpower and prevent procrastination. The book cites the example of Ronan Byrne, who developed a stationary bike that would only allow him to watch Netflix while pedaling at a certain speed.
According to Milkman, Mary Poppins was right in saying that a spoon full of sugar (Netflix, in Byrne’s case) really does make the medicine (exercise) go down. Perhaps the key to making those new year’s resolutions stick lies in planning for – rather than trying to resist – temptation.
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