PsychologyThe DetectiveIntermediate
The Science of Habits course icon

The Science of Habits

Like Duolingo, but for The Science of Habits. Tomo turns the whole topic into a game you play five minutes a day, until it actually sticks.

For the part of you with thirty open tabs that never became anything.

54 bite-size levelsAbout 5 minutes each

Free during early access · No credit card · iPhone & Android

Bennie the Bloodhound
The Science of Habits
with Bennie the Bloodhound
54
Levels
4
Sections
5
Min/day
What you'll learn

Key ideas in The Science of Habits

  • The cue acts as the trigger to start a behavior
  • The craving is the motivational force behind the habit
  • The reward satisfies the initial craving
  • Dopamine hits hardest during anticipation of reward
  • The reward provides the final satisfaction
  • The Habit Loop: Cue, Craving, Response, Reward
  • Habit formation involves a shift in brain activity to the basal ganglia
  • Automation reduces the cognitive load required to perform the task
  • The chronological sequence of the habit loop components
  • The reward is the specific payoff that satisfies the craving
  • Surface-level habits often mask deeper psychological or physiological needs
  • The functional difference between craving and reward
  • Identifying the underlying need met by specific rewards
  • Associative learning links cues to outcomes
  • Repeated pairing strengthens the neural pathway between cue and response
  • Why habits become less conscious over time
Why not just Google it

You've tried the other tabs

Wikipedia

Thirty open tabs. Four facts you actually kept.

YouTube

You watched. You nodded. By Sunday it was gone.

ChatGPT

One answer, then back to scrolling.

Online courses

Eight weeks. You meant to finish. You didn't.

Tomo gives The Science of Habits the Duolingo treatment: levels, streaks, and quick quizzes that test what you just learned. That game loop is what the tabs above never had, so it's the one you actually finish.

Try a question

Here's what playing it feels like

A real question from this course. Take your best guess.

The Anatomy of the Loop

What is the true nature of a 'craving' when it takes hold of a person's behavior?

Get it right to open this lesson and 53 more in the app.

Course map

Where The Science of Habits takes you

Unlock the neurological secrets behind why we do what we do. Learn to dismantle destructive patterns and engineer lasting positive change using evidence-based behavioral psychology.

  1. 1

    The Neurological Foundation

    • The Habit Loop: Cue, Craving, Response, Reward
    • Basal Ganglia vs. Prefrontal Cortex
    • Neuroplasticity and Long-Term Potentiation
    • The Role of Dopamine in Anticipation
  2. 2

    Environmental and Social Triggers

    • Contextual Cues and Choice Architecture
    • Social Contagion and Peer Influence
    • Friction: The Physics of Behavior
    • Implementation Intentions and 'If-Then' Planning
    • The Impact of Digital Environments
    • Visual Priming and Habit Stacking
  3. 3

    Breaking the Cycle

    • Identifying Keystone Habits
    • The Golden Rule of Habit Change
    • Urge Surfing and Mindfulness Techniques
  4. 4

    Sustaining Long-Term Change

    • Identity-Based Habits vs. Outcome Goals
    • The Plateau of Latent Potential
    • Variable Reward Schedules
    • Recovery Strategies for Relapse
    • Measuring Progress Without Obsession

4 sections · 18 units · 54 levels. Built to play, not to enroll.

How it's taught

You pick the voice

This course
The Detective

The Science of Habits is taught in the The Detective style: every fact is a clue. Want a different feel? In the app you can spin up the same topic in any of Tomo's teaching styles. Same facts, totally different vibe.

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Start free

Start The Science of Habits today.

Download Tomo, search The Science of Habits, and play your first lesson in under a minute.