A bad habit is a behaviour pattern perceived as negative. Common examples include:

procrastination Procrastination is the act of unnecessarily delaying or postponing something despite knowing that there could be negative consequences for doing so. It is a common human experience involving delays in everyday chores or even putting off tasks such ...

overspending Overspending is spending more money than one can afford. It is a common problem when easy credit is available. The term overspending is also used for investment projects when payments exceed actual calculated cost. Causes Some overspending is a f ...

and

nail-biting Nail biting, also known as onychophagy or onychophagia, is an oral compulsive habit of biting one's fingernails. It is sometimes described as a parafunctional activity, the use of the mouth for an activity other than speaking, eating, or drink ...

Development

Research on habit formation generally suggests an individual can acquire a new habit on average over 66 days. This process is marked by an asymptomatic increase of the behavior, with the initial acceleration slowing to a plateau after the said time period. There are several variations regarding the period of development. The time to break a bad habit or change an unhealthy behavioral pattern such as smoking may take longer.

Will and intention

A key factor in distinguishing a bad habit from an

addiction Addiction is a neuropsychological disorder characterized by a persistent and intense urge to use a drug or engage in a behavior that produces natural reward, despite substantial harm and other negative consequences. Repetitive drug use can ...

mental disease A mental disorder, also referred to as a mental illness, a mental health condition, or a psychiatric disability, is a behavioral or mental pattern that causes significant distress or impairment of personal functioning. A mental disorder is ...

is the element of willpower. If a person still seems to have control over the behavior then it is just a

habit A habit (or wont, as a humorous and formal term) is a routine of behavior that is repeated regularly and tends to occur subconsciously. A 1903 paper in the '' American Journal of Psychology'' defined a "habit, from the standpoint of psychology, ...

. Good intentions are able to override the negative effect of bad habits but their effect seems to be independent and additive — the bad habits remain but are subdued rather than canceled.

Prevention

The best time to correct a bad habit is immediately, before it becomes established. So, bad habits are best prevented from developing in childhood.

Cure

There are many techniques for removing bad habits once they have become established. One good one is to go for between 21 and 28 days try as hard as possible not to give in to the habit then rewarding yourself at the end of it. Then try to go a week, if the habit remains repeat the process, this method is proven to have a high success rate.

Christian perspective

In Christianity a bad habit is the repetition of sin. This can be seen in the

Book of Proverbs The Book of Proverbs (, ; , ; , "Proverbs (of Solomon)") is a book in the third section (called Ketuvim) of the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh)/the Christian Old Testament. It is traditionally ascribed to King Solomon and his students. When translated into ...

: "His own iniquities catch the wicked, and he is fast bound with the rope of his own sins." (Prov. v. 22.). St.

Augustine of Hippo Augustine of Hippo ( , ; ; 13 November 354 – 28 August 430) was a theologian and philosopher of Berber origin and the bishop of Hippo Regius in Numidia, Roman North Africa. His writings deeply influenced the development of Western philosop ...

says: "The habit of sin blinds sinners, so that they no longer see the evil which they do, nor the ruin which they bring upon themselves; hence they live in blindness, as if there was neither God, nor heaven, nor hell, nor eternity." While St.

Alphonsus Liguori Alphonsus Maria de Liguori (27 September 1696 – 1 August 1787) was an Italian Catholic bishop and saint, as well as a spiritual writer, composer, musician, artist, poet, lawyer, scholastic philosopher, and theologian. He founded the Congre ...

states that there are three effects of a bad habit. 1) It blinds the understanding. 2) It hardens the heart. 3) It diminishes our strength.

References