Synergizing habits and goals with variational Bayes: A new framework for biological and artificial embodied agents
![Diagrams showing features of habitual behavior (e.g., eating snack when focusing on work) and goal-directed behavior (planning a meal to lose weight). Left: habitual behavior with features like automatic, model-free, and fast; Right: goal-directed behavior with features like thoughtful, model-based, and slow.](https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/research/uploads/prodnew/2024/06/Variational-Bayes-BlogHeroFeature-1400x788-1.png)
In the intertwined worlds of psychology, cognitive neuroscience, and artificial intelligence, scientists continue to pursue the elusive goal of decoding and mimicking human and animal behavior. One of the most intriguing aspects of this research is the interplay between two types of behaviors: habitual and goal directed. Traditionally, these behaviors are believed