Charles Duhigg, The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business (New York: Random House, 2012) ("In a 1994 Harvard study that examined people who had radically changed their lives, for instance, researchers found that some people had remade their habits after personal tragedy, such as a divorce or a life-threatening illness. Other changed after they saw a friend go through something awful...." "Just as frequently, however, there is no tragedy that preceded people's transformations. Rather, they changed because they were embedded in social groups that made change easier...." "'Change occurs among other people,' one of the psychologists involved in the study...told me. 'It seems real when we can see it in other people's eyes.'" "The precise mechanisms of belief are still little understood.... " "But we do know that for habits to permanently change, people must believe that change is feasible. The same process that makes AA so effective--the power of a group to teach individuals how to believe--happens whenever people come together to help one another change. Belief is easier when it occurs within a community." Id. at 88-89. Also see Timothy D. Wilson, "Can't Help Myself," NYT Book Review, Sunday, 3/11/2012.).
Chonyi Taylor (aka Diana Susan Taylor), Enough!: A Buddhist Approach to Finding Release from Addictive Patterns (Ithaca, NY: Snow Lion, 2010) ("The definition of addiction which is used in this book...: Addiction is a mental habit in which there appears to be no conscious control, which gives short-term pleasure and long-term harm, and in which our own needs override the needs of others. Id. at 9. "Ideas can also be unwanted, for example the idea that all bacteria are bad, or the idea that we will always be useless, or bad, or unlovable. Whatever the habit, whatever triggers the habit, undoing the habit begins with changing the way we think. A habit comes from the mind and so replacing the habit means replacing the patterns in the mind. Even very deep habits can be changed.:" Id. at 24. "Addiction is about wanting happiness, but the happiness that comes with addiction is necessarily a temporary, impermanent pleasure. We get trapped into addiction because we want this apparent happiness forever. We cannot have it forever and yet we still yearn for a lasting happiness? What does this mean? Is it possible to find a lasting happiness?" Id. at 59. "Emotions become exaggerated through fear. Even when that fear is about not getting what we want, behind that is often a desperate desire to prop up a shaky self-esteem." Id. at 78. "Addiction makes us very self-centered because when we blunt our minds from pain by our addiction, we blunt our mind from the pain of others. We become so absorbed by the addiction that we no longer care about others." Id. at 81. "Tools for How We Think: Humility, Patience, Contentment, Delight [:]... Humility comes form knowing clearly where we stand and not trying to pretend to be different. It comes from having equanimity towards ourselves. People with humility can see beyond their own viewpoint and interests. They are open to other viewpoints. Humility shifts one perspective from 'me' to 'others.'... Patience means not flaring up when someone disagrees with us or wants to hurt us, or when things go wrong. It is the opposite of instant gratification.... Contentment is about being satisfied with what we have instead of always wanting more.... People with addictions are discontented people. We are discontented when we cannot get access to whatever we are addicted to.... contentment is not the same as not caring about anything.... Delight is missing from the heart of an addicted person. It has been replaced by the excitement, or the numbness, of addiction. Delight comes about when we have love, contentment, and humility in our hearts. It is a sheer joy in the world and the people around us. How can we develop a habit of delight? [] We make delight a tool when we begin to notice little things...." Id. at 130-132. "Tools for How We Act: Kindness, Honesty, Generosity, Right Speech...." Id at 132-136. "Tools for How We Relate to Others: Respect, Forgiveness, Gratitude, Loyalty...." Id. at 138-143. "Tools for Finding Meaning: Principles, Aspiration, Service, Courage...." Id. at at 143-148. In order to change my life, in order to rid myself of my addictions, this construct called "I" must be mindful; that is, I must live with mindfulness.).
