Researchers from the University of Southern California found that while stress is known to sway people in the wrong direction at times, it can also inculcate good habits in them.

Many studies have shown that in times of stress, people tend to take the easy or more comfortable way out. In the bargain, they sometimes end up indulging in negative activities. However, a new study conducted by researchers from the University of Southern California found that stress can also be instrumental in inculcating good habits in a person.

According to Wendy Wood, a professor of psychology and business at the University of Southern California, stress not only strengthens bad habits but also makes the good habits in a person stronger.

"When your willpower is low and you have little motivational energy, you are likely to fall back into old, bad habits of eating too much and not exercising - but only if those are, in fact, your habits," says Wood. "Our novel finding is that people fall back into good habits in just the same way."

Stress is also known to deplete willpower because the brain ceases to function during extremely stressful conditions.

"People can't make decisions easily when stressed, are low in willpower or feeling overwhelmed," Wood says. "These pressures limit our capacity to make decisions." The default in those cases is to engage in habitual behavior, so, she says, "When you are too tired to make a decision, you tend to just repeat what you usually do." And it doesn't matter what that habit is.

The study was carried out across 5 experiments where various types of habits and stresses were analyzed

"Getting enough exercise, eating right, getting enough sleep, not smoking - all of these should become an unthinking, automatic part of your day," Wood says. "If they are, then you will continue to perform them even when your willpower is low and you can't muster the energy to 'do the right thing' for your health." The fact that habits are hard to break can work for you or against you.

The study was published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.