Psychology 101: Series - my goal for the new year: change my negative habits for more positive ones…

 

Series: My goals for the new year

Goal # 2: Change my negative habits for more positive ones - psychology 101 -

January 6, 2022——————————————————

Psychology 101: The Human Brain and Habits - Human Beings are Creatures of Habits -

** By Hector Williams Zorrilla

Let's say first, that habits are not mere "acts" or customs that we perform spontaneously and automatically and without thinking. They are behaviors that originate those behaviors mentioned and something else ...

But although habits are expressed automatically and spontaneously, they have psycho-emotional, social and cultural contents that are more complex and profound than their mere behavioral expression.

A learned habit has psychological or mental content, which is expressed in our predominant ideas and thoughts in everyday life.

They have emotional or affective content, which is expressed in our emotions and feelings.

Habits also have behavioral or conduct  content, which is expressed in the behaviors we exhibit.

They also have cultural content, that is, they have components of the family environment, parenting and child rearing we grow up. These are powerful components of the social elements of habits, which become predominant patterns in the society where the people who express them live.

Finalky, habits have general and specific contents of what is called the human personality. The habits of all human beings are intrinsically embedded in their personality traits.

The predominant habits of a person, that is, the habits that a person expresses consistently and on a daily basis, define basic and central aspects of that person, which in personality psychology are called traits.

Let’s say second, that habits are established, created, developed, learned, and expressed in and / or through brain connections.

Without active brain connections that give energetic life to habits, they cannot exist, much less express themselves.

The fewer active brain connections a person has, the fewer habits they can learn and express. We know now, that a person could remain in a "vegetative" state in terms of the expression of daily habits, if that person has suffered serious and irreparable damage to important components in the system of brain connections.

On the other hand, the more healthy brain connections a person has, the more habits that person can learn and express in his/her daily activities.

Habits are powerful and influential agents in the life of every human being. Human beings are creatures of habit, whether we are aware of it or not.

A human being needs about 30 days of consecutive and consistent practice to learn and / or unlearn a habit.

And furthermore, a habit that you want to unlearn has to be replaced by a new habit.

Most of the habits that we learn and practice in our daily lives are positive, that is, they help us to live life more effectively and efficiently.

Human beings practice a wide variety of types or kinds of habits, from personal hygiene habits, social habits, cultural habits, financial habits, love or romantic habits, sexual habits, eating habits, health habits, reading habits, family habits, work habits, entertainment habits, sleeping habits ...

All the habits that are learned can be unlearned and changed for other habits that are more satisfying to the person expressing the habits.

At the beginning of a new year, many millions or billions of human beings set out to change unpleasant habits for more satisfying ones ...

** The author is a psychologist, university professor and writer