The purpose of this chapter is to identify the role of free will within habits and conclude the book. Author Charles Duhigg keeps a consistency regarding the structure of each chapter all the way through the conclusion of his work. Like all other chapters, multiple examples are used to illustrate the author’s ideas. In this last section of The Power of Habit, Duhigg successfully ties in the rest of the book while introducing a new concept: the power of free will enables a person to change any habit.
The chapter begins like every other chapter; it introduces a couple different examples in depth, giving the reader a complete understanding of the cases that the author will later analyze. In this section, two entirely different cases are used to demonstrate the influence of free will on habits. The first case studies Angie Bachmann; a typical wife and mother of three who develops a devastating addiction to gambling, leading to the family’s bankruptcy. The second example features Brian Thomas; a man notorious for sleepwalking who experiences a sleep terror and unconsciously murders his wife. With both of these examples, the author initially implies that these subjects did not have a choice and acted on habits. However, he will later clarify that anyone has the freedom and responsibility to change a habit. Duhigg writes, “Every habit, no matter its complexity, is malleable.” (pp.270)
The conclusion of this book is well executed, successfully uniting several ideas highlighted in previous chapters. In this final chapter, Duhigg applies the Golden Rule of habit change: identify the cue and reward of a habit and change the routine. For Bachmann, she saw herself as the victim of her bad habit and never made a strong enough effort to change her behavior. The cue for her habit was emotional stress caused by marital problems and the death of her parents. She would gamble to feel a satisfaction that winning or coming close to winning would give her. When Bachmann found herself in a lawsuit regarding the debt she owed the casino, she blamed the habit for her behavior. Her excuse did not pass in the court, and she was held responsible for her actions. For Thomas, the cue and routine for his habit happened while he was asleep. Unlike most people whose bodies naturally paralyze while unconscious, Thomas’s body is active while dreaming. When experiencing a sleep terror, Thomas believed that he was pulling another man off of his wife and strangling him automatically out of defense. When he woke, he discovered that he had strangled his wife to death. Thomas was found not guilty and discharged for the crime because he acted unconsciously; out of deep habit. Duhigg successfully connects two dissimilar examples back to the concept of free will. Bachmann’s actions may have been dominated by her habits, but she certainly had the ability to change her routine. For Thomas, he lacked free will to control his habits since he was unaware of what they were capable of doing.
Duhigg effectively concluded his book by restating the importance of belief and the understanding that habits can be chosen. This final section was easy to follow and remained structurally consistent with the rest of the book. The author could have spent more time connecting back to previous examples in his conclusion to tie the book together, but his method of introducing the role of free will is still effective. He ends his book with a positive message, empowering the reader with the tools and mindset needed to control and change any habit.
Outline:
Angie Bachmann (married young, mother of 3, develops gambling addiction)
-Begins gambling to give her something to do
-Sets strict guidelines to avoid addiction
-Gradually becomes more lenient about gambling
-Eventually took over her life, becoming a habit
Cue (stress, fighting with her husband)
Routine (gambling)
Reward (winning)
The story is intriguing and keeps the reader engaged.
Brian Thomas (victim of sleep terror, killed his wife)
-Notorious for sleepwalking
-Killed his wife while asleep
-Brain activity during sleep terrors look similar to the brain following a habit
-People who commit crimes unconsciously aren’t responsible for the crimes
-Thomas was discharged with the crime and set free
Thomas is not responsible for his crime, but Bachmann is.
Bachmann’s parents passed away and she inherited nearly $1 million
-The stress of her parents’ passing led her to gambling again
-She developed an addiction to gambling leading to bankruptcy
-Casino sued her for the debts she owed
-Attempted to countersue the casino for extending her credit and paying for trips to gamble.
-Claimed to be reacting automatically to casino’s temptations
-She did not win because she is responsible for her habit
Conclusion of the book
Habits are different: there are different cues and different rewards. In order to change the habit, you must identify the cue, routine, and reward.
“Every habit, no matter its complexity, is malleable.” (270)
“Once you know a habit exists, you have the responsibility to change it.” (271)
Free will:
“The will to believe is the most important ingredient in creating belief in change.” (273)
“If you believe you can change—if you make it a habit—the change become real. This is the real power of habit: the insight that your habits are what you chose them to be.” (273)
Notes:
This was a good conclusion to the book by ending with the topic of free will. The very different examples still connected back to a lack of free will. Bachmann faced an addiction and Thomas was unconscious. In the end, we are all responsible for our habits and correcting them and changing them.
The end of the chapter was effective by keeping the consistent structure of each chapter by using examples. The conclusion to the book didn’t strictly summarize the rest of the chapters but was able to tie in the rest of the ideas throughout the book using two examples.
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