Not a Bad Habit, a Coping Method

Judson Brewer and Steven C. Hayes expose the fatal flaw in how we think about habits: labeling a behavior "bad" grades it without asking what job it performs. That evening reach for the phone, the glass, the lighter isn't random loyalty. Research tracking smokers at random moments found the expected mood-relief link vanished on ordinary days, appearing only during quit attempts. The discomfort being soothed is often created by the behavior itself. Function-based change plans reduced behaviors noticeably; plans ignoring function performed no better than doing nothing.

You'll learn:

- Why drinking to cope predicts problems independent of quantity

- How the relief a habit delivers shrinks as it settles in

- Why "symptom substitution" lacks serious supporting evidence