Applying the Science of Habit Formation to Evidence-Based Psychological Treatment: Improving Outcomes for Mental Illness

Habits impact nearly every domain of our physical and mental health. While the science of habit formation has long been of interest to psychological scientists across disciplines, we propose that applications to clinical psychological science have been insufficiently explored. More specifically, EBPTs are interventions targeting psychological processes that cause and/or maintain mental illness and that have been developed and evaluated scientifically. An implicit goal of EBPTs is to disrupt unwanted habits and develop desired habits. Yet, there has been insufficient attention given to habit formation principles, theory and measures in the development and delivery of EBTPs. Herein we consider if outcomes following the receipt of an EBPT would greatly improve if the basic science of habit formation were more fully leveraged. We distill six ingredients that are central to habit formation and demonstrate how these are relevant to EBPTs. We highlight practice points and an agenda for future research. We propose that there is an urgent need for research to guide the application of the science of habit formation and disruption to the complex “real-life” habits that are the essence of EBPTs.