Framework · Popularised by Charles Duhigg

The habit loop — cue, routine, reward

Habits run as loops: a cue triggers a routine that delivers a reward. To change a habit, keep the cue and reward and swap the routine.

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Habits run as loops: a cue triggers a routine that delivers a reward. To change a habit, keep the cue and reward and swap the routine.

How to use it with a real habit

• Map any habit as cue → routine → reward.
• Name the reward an unwanted habit delivers.
• Test a new routine that delivers a similar reward.

What the evidence says

Practitioner framework: A practical approach from an author, coach or educator. Often useful and built on research, but the framework itself has not been tested as a whole.

A popular simplification of research on cues and reinforcement. Researchers describe habits as broader context–response links, with reward mattering mainly while a habit forms.

Limits

• Simplifies complex research into a neat loop.
• Stories illustrate the idea but don’t test it.

Sources

• The habit loop — cue, routine, reward
• The Power of Habit — Charles Duhigg (2012)
• Wood & Rünger (2016). Psychology of Habit. Annual Review of Psychology. doi:10.1146/annurev-psych-122414-033417