characteristic form or manner of growth.

Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary
habit (noun)
1.
archaic - clothing
2.
a) a costume characteristic of a calling, rank, or function - a nun's habit
b) a costume worn for horseback riding
3.
manner of conducting oneself - bearing
4.
bodily appearance or makeup - a man of fleshy habit
5.
the prevailing disposition or character of a person's thoughts and feelings mental makeup
6.
a settled tendency or usual manner of behavior - her habit of taking a morning walk
7.
a) a behavior pattern acquired by frequent repetition or physiologic exposure that shows itself in regularity or increased facility of performance
b) an acquired mode of behavior that has become nearly or completely involuntary - got up early from force of habit
c) - addiction a drug habit
8.
characteristic mode of growth or occurrence - a grass similar to Indian corn in habit
9.
of a crystal characteristic assemblage of forms at crystallization leading to a usual appearance - shape
habit (verb)
transitive verb
- clothe dress
habit (Wikipedia)

A habit (or wont as a humorous and formal term) is a routine of behavior that is repeated regularly and tends to occur subconsciously.

The American Journal of Psychology (1903) defines a "habit, from the standpoint of psychology, [as] a more or less fixed way of thinking, willing, or feeling acquired through previous repetition of a mental experience." Habitual behavior often goes unnoticed in persons exhibiting it, because a person does not need to engage in self-analysis when undertaking routine tasks. Habits are sometimes compulsory. A 2002 daily experience study by habit researcher Wendy Wood and her colleagues found that approximately 43% of daily behaviors are performed out of habit. New behaviours can become automatic through the process of habit formation. Old habits are hard to break and new habits are hard to form because the behavioural patterns which humans repeat become imprinted in neural pathways, but it is possible to form new habits through repetition.

A 2007 study by Wood and Neal found that when behaviors are repeated in a consistent context, there is an incremental increase in the link between the context and the action. This increases the automaticity of the behavior in that context. Features of an automatic behavior are all or some of:

  • efficiency
  • lack of awareness
  • unintentionality
  • uncontrollability
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