Are ambient smart environments sufficient for developing good habits?

Abstract Ambient smart environments (ASEs) have been proposed as technologically enriched spaces capable of supporting adaptive behaviour and healthier habits Aydin ( Philosophy and Technology 32 (2):321–338, 2019); Hipólito et al. ( Synthese 199 (11):4457–4481, 2023); White & Hipólito, ( Cognitive Systems Research, 84, 101199, 2024) White & Miller, ( Synthese, 204 (2), 1–24, 2024) White et al. Synthese, 205 (1), 1–18, 2024); Verbeek ( NanoEthics 3 (3):231–242, 2009). Proponents suggest that ASEs effectively disrupt maladaptive habitual behaviours by introducing optimal levels of uncertainty, implicitly guiding users towards healthier patterns of thinking and acting without requiring deliberate reflection. However, we argue that these interventionist approaches risk overlooking the conditions necessary for the consolidation of more sustainable and beneficial habits. In particular, we argue that such habits require the engagement of motivational states, effortful interaction, and opportunities for further reinforcement. To address this gap, we propose that ASE interventions must be complemented by more stable, deliberately structured, design-centred environments (DEs), which provide consistent affordances that explicitly invite reflective, intrinsically motivated interactions. We emphasise how these hybrid environments scaffold learning and feedback processes, and enable agents to progressively refine their engagement with affordances through experience and reflection. Finally, we discuss the broader philosophical and ethical implications, highlighting how hybrid environments mitigate the risks of techno-paternalism, and actively support adaptive autonomy, reflective control, and meaningful behavioural change.