Why do we stay stuck in the same trapped routine, whether that routine consists of a dragged-out TV series, a toxic relationship, or even a bad habit? The simple answer is because we’ve already spent too much time and energy on it, to simply walk away. With evidence backed by neuroscience, this behavior proves that it isn’t just about poor decision making, rather it’s embedded into the way our brains are naturally built. Researcher Brian Sweiss (2020) provided more insight into this concept through the idea of “Sensitivity to ‘sunk costs’”, by discovering that, rats and mice, just like us humans, share the same tendency, which is the deeper we commit to something, the more difficult it will be stay away even when the smarter option would be to walk away.
Sweiss goes further into detail about the experiments that explored effort-based decision making tasks across different species. In this experiment, participants were required to offer time or effort in order to receive a reward which Sweiss observed that after continuously putting in effort, they became less and less likely to walk away, even when quitting would have saved them from further, greater losses. This powerful behavior, also known as the sunk cost effect, showcases that persistence doesn’t guarantee smarter outcomes and often stems less from logic and more from a deep-rooted tendency that overemphasizes what has already been spent instead of what we still stand to achieve. As this has been observed across multiple species, it’s not something shaped by human culture or personal failures, rather it stems from a biologically built-in behavior.
Sweiss’ findings go hand in hand with a psychology article diving into the science behind keeping our bad habits. Humans accept and continue these “destructive” behaviors as they are driven by emotional attachment, loss aversion, and a natural reluctance to admitting failure (Lewis, 2020). Similar to Sweiss’ rats who are stuck with a losing task, people often cling to old habits and routines convinced that leaving now would be a waste of all the time, effort, and sacrifice they put into something. Lewis argues that it’s not reason that keeps us reluctant to quit, instead it’s the familiar feeling of regret. Some might argue that it’s often easier to deal with the emotional pain than owning up to a bad decision.
As we further involve the biological factor, we can explore how habits are neurologically embedded into our brains. The outline of this powerful process follows a neural loop consisting of: cue, routine, and reward (Raypole, 2020). Overtime, as these loops strengthen, the behaviors become so deeply rooted that it requires conscious effort to change them. Adding sunk cost sensitivity into the mix, this biological system can make it feel as though obvious decisions, such as walking away are nearly impossible. This traps us into never-ending cycles that prevent us from achieving greater things and confine us into the same unhealthy patterns. For example, many people often find themselves staying in college majors/career paths they no longer enjoy because they’ve already poured years of time, effort, or financial resources into them. Although changing direction might offer greater fulfillment, the burden of past efforts make it harder tow walk away. These findings emphasize that the struggle with bad habits doesn’t come from laziness or poor self regulation but is an evolutionary survival instinct that has helped us thrive (and survive) in the past. Historically, moving forward in the face of difficulties may have led to greater rewards in a world full of unpredictability. However, in today’s society, our decisions are influenced by the complexity of social and personal factors, but the same persistence can keep us stuck and trapped in toxic relationships and unhealthy habits and behaviors that no longer benefit us.
By understanding how sunk cost sensitivity and brain patterns affect our behaviors, it provides a more realistic and practical framework in terms of behavioral changes. Rather than looking to blame oneself after not quitting/breaking harmful habits, we can recognize the science of our brains and the underlying processes that can help create solutions or strategies that work hand in hand with our biology. Such strategies include mindful decision making, intentional routine switch up, and catching early signs of sunk cost traps can help work around the brain’s automatic wiring. Sweiss’ research proves that even rodents are prone to falling into the same unproductive patterns. Given that rodents can get caught in sunk cost traps, it’s understandable that humans who have more complex emotional layers, struggle too. Removing these biases doesn’t necessarily lead to success, instead it’s understanding and working with them to make decisions that will truly benefit us in the long run and align with our long-term interests.
References
Raypole, C (2020) The science of habit: How habits form and how to break them. Healthline. https://www.healthline.com/health/the-science-of-habit#2
Srinivasan, N (2020). Futile Persistence: Why do we keep our bad habits? Psychology Today https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/insight-therapy/202008/futile-persistence-why-do-we-keep-our-bad-habits
Sweiss, B. M., Abram, S. V., Schmidt, B. J., Seeland, K. D., MacDonald, A. W., 3rd, Thomas, M. J., & Redish, A. D. (2018). Sensitivity to "sunk costs" in mice, rats, and humans. Science (New York, N.Y.), 361(6398), 178–181. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aar8644
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