Répéter pour régner : ce que la science révèle sur la puissance de la répétition
Un geste minuscule, répété assez longtemps, façonne durablement notre cerveau et, avec lui, nos journées. Voici pourquoi — preuves à l’appui.
40 %
de nos actions sont déjà… des répétitions
66 jours
pour qu’un nouveau comportement devienne automatique
24 h
sans rappel actif, on perd plus de 50 % d’une info en 24 h
1. 40 % de nos actions sont déjà… des répétitions
Une étude de Wendy Wood & David Neal (Duke University) a montré que près de la moitié de nos actes quotidiens sont déclenchés par le contexte, sans réflexion consciente dornsife.usc.edu . Les habitudes gouvernent donc notre pilote automatique : bonne raison pour les choisir plutôt que de les subir.
2. Combien de temps avant que ça « colle » ?
L’expérience de Philippa Lally à l’UCL a suivi 96 personnes pendant 12 semaines : il faut en moyenne 66 jours pour qu’un nouveau comportement devienne automatique, avec des écarts de 18 à 254 jours selon la complexité ucl.ac.uk . Moralité : visez la constance et oubliez le mythe des « 21 jours ».
3. Pourquoi l’oubli frappe si vite
Dès 1885, Hermann Ebbinghaus a tracé la légendaire courbe de l’oubli : sans rappel actif, on perd plus de 50 % d’une info en 24 h en.wikipedia.org . La solution ? Répéter avec stratégie…
4. …et avec espacement
Les travaux récents sur le spaced repetition confirment qu’étaler les rappels bat le bachotage : jusqu’à +89 % de rétention en plus par rapport au « cramming » sciencedirect.com neurosciencenews.com . Le principe ? Revoir juste avant d’oublier, puis augmenter progressivement l’intervalle.
5. Transformer la science en routine
Étape Ce que dit la recherche Comment l’appliquer Choisir un signal Contexte = déclencheur automatique dornsife.usc.edu Associez votre rituel à une action fixe (ex. café du matin). Répéter quotidiennement 6-8 sem. 66 jours ≈ seuil moyen d’automaticité ucl.ac.uk Bloquez un rappel dans votre agenda jusqu’à ce que le geste devienne réflexe. Espacer les révisions Spaced repetition maximise la mémoire sciencedirect.com J-1, J-3, J-7, puis J-14 pour revoir le contenu ou le mantra. Ancrer sur plusieurs canaux Multisensoriel ↔ consolidation plus forte Combinez : lecture, geste physique, rappel tactile (ex. toucher un objet).
6. Mini-plan d’action « 66 jours »
Définissez un micro-rituel (≤ 60 s) lié à un objectif clair.Choisissez un déclencheur fixe (lever du rideau, première gorgée d’eau…).
Programmez des rappels espacés (appli, SMS, post-it).
Suivez vos répétitions : cochez 66 cases, célébrez à la fin.
Tip : Si vous ratez une journée, reprenez simplement le fil — l’important est la tendance, pas la perfection.
La répétition n’est pas ennuyeuse ; elle est neuro-magique. En l’alliant aux bons intervalles et à des déclencheurs stables, vous re-câblez votre pilote automatique pour qu’il travaille enfin pour vous, pas contre vous. Alors, quel micro-rituel allez-vous répéter dès demain ?
dornsife.usc.edu
Habits—A Repeat Performance – USC Dornsife
13 septembre 2006 — ABSTRACT—Habits are response dispositions that are ac-tivated automatically by the context cues that co-occurred with responses during past performance. Experience-sampling diary studies indicate that much of everyday action is characterized by habitual repetition.
ucl.ac.uk
How long does it take to form a habit? – UCL
4 août 2009 — In our study, we looked at how long it took people to reach a limit of self-reported automaticity for performing an initially new behaviour (that is, performing an action automatically), and the average time (among those for whom our model was a good fit) was 66 days.
en.wikipedia.org
Forgetting curve – Wikipedia
Hermann Ebbinghaus hypothesized that the speed of forgetting depends on a number of factors such as the difficulty of the learned material (e.g. how meaningful it is), its representation and other physiological factors such as stress and sleep. He further hypothesized that the basic forgetting rate differs little between individuals.
sciencedirect.com
The Effectiveness of Spaced Learning, Interleaving, and Retrieval …
1 novembre 2023 — Strong evidence supports spaced repetition as a key component of effective learning [4, 5, 6, 7]. Compared with massed learning (“cramming”), studying material over spaced intervals significantly improves long-term retention, even when total studying time is the same [5, 8].
neurosciencenews.com
Variability and Spaced Learning Key to Enhanced Memory
12 mars 2024 — Spaced learning improves memory retention, particularly when content varies between sessions, offering a more realistic reflection of real-world experiences. Memory for items paired with different contexts improves with variation, while associative memory benefits from stability and longer intervals between repetitions.
Plus
stratbeans.com
Forgetting Curve Explained: Strategies to Improve Memory Retention
7 mai 2025 — Ebbinghaus discovered that most forgetting occurs within the first few days after learning, with memory loss slowing down over time. However, he also identified strategies like spaced repetition and o…
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Spaced Repetition and the Ebbinghaus Forgetting Curve: The Secret to …
22 mars 2025 — Learn how spaced repetition conquers the Ebbinghaus curve, boosting long-term memory and driving ongoing professional development success.
studysmarter.co.uk
Forgetting Curve: Definition & Ebbinghaus – StudySmarter
13 janvier 2025 — Understanding the forgetting curve can improve study habits by highlighting the importance of spaced repetition. By reviewing material at strategic intervals, learners can reinforce memory retention a…
freddietaylor.net
66 Days To Form A Habit – Freddie Taylor
1 janvier 2025 — Here’s how to understand the science of habit formation and how to set yourself up for success. The study by Dr. Lally, published in the European Journal of Social Psychology, tracked participants as…
kal.so
The Power of Spaced Repetition in Learning | Kal Blog
10 décembre 2024 — Learn how spaced repetition can improve your memory retention by up to 200% and why it’s considered one of the most effective learning techniques by cognitive scientists.
markselliott.com
Boosting Memory Retention with Spaced Repetition and Retrieval Practice
6 décembre 2024 — Spaced repetition and retrieval practice are essential for improving long-term memory retention and academic success. Institutions that prioritize these evidence-based learning strategies can signific…
spacedaily.com
The Science of Spaced Repetition: Retaining Knowledge Over Time
30 novembre 2024 — Unlock the power of spaced repetition to boost memory retention and learning efficiency. Learn how this proven method helps retain knowledge over time and improve study habits.
spring.org.uk
How Long To Form A Habit? 66 Days Is A Rough Average
15 novembre 2024 — Unless you’re in the habit of sawing off your own arm, this is not particularly relevant. Forming a habit takes 66 days. Psychological research on this question is available, though, in a paper publis…
31memorize.com
The Role of Spaced-Repetition in Memory Retention
3 novembre 2024 — One effective method for enhancing memory retention is the technique of spaced repetition. In this blog post, we will explore the science behind spaced repetition, how it works, and its application fo…
currenthabits.com
66 Days to Form a Habit: The Science Behind Building Lasting Change
19 octobre 2024 — The study, published in the European Journal of Social Psychology, followed 96 participants over a 12-week period as they attempted to build new habits. The findings showed that, on average, it took 6…
upcyclededucation.com
How Ebbinghaus Forgetting Curve Impacts Child Learning – Upcycled Education
22 mai 2024 — Utilizing retrieval practice, spaced repetition, and just-in-time learning with scenario-based approaches can help children retain information more effectively and combat the Ebbinghaus Forgetting Cur…
thefocus.news
It takes just 66 days on average to form a new habit, study reveals
11 janvier 2024 — According to a 2009 study by Philippa Lally published in the European Journal of Social Psychology, it takes an average of 66 days to form a habit. They studied a range of different people and looked…
noramentalhealth.com
How Long Does It Take to Form New Habits? – noramentalhealth.com
17 novembre 2023 — Phillippa Lally and Colin Wardle examined the habit formation journey of 96 individuals over a 12-week period in a 2009 study published in the European Journal of Social Psychology. Their studies foun…
structural-learning.com
Ebbinghaus Forgetting Curve – Structural Learning
30 octobre 2023 — It provides a visual representation of how quickly information fades from our memory over time if it is not actively reinforced. The curve illustrates that memory retention drops sharply within the fi…
shortform.com
How the Spaced Repetition Technique Improves Memory
30 septembre 2023 — Learn how to use the spaced repetition technique to enhance your studying practice. What Is the Spaced Repetition Technique? Your brain remembers information best by engaging with it repeatedly over t…
primedtolearn.com
Spaced Repetition Unleashed: 11 Benefits to Unlock Your Brain’s …
4 septembre 2023 — By strategically spacing intervals between review sessions, Spaced Repetition capitalizes on this natural forgetting process to reinforce memories at just the right moments, increasing long-term reten…
springer.com
Improving Learning Effectiveness by Leveraging Spaced Repetition (SR …
11 juin 2023 — Spaced repetition (SR) help improve the quality of long-term learning techniques where a learner revises previously imparted knowledge multiple times over long period of time (days or weeks) at regula…
omnisets.com
Secrets of Spaced Repetition and the Ebbinghaus Forgetting Curve – OmniSets
22 mai 2023 — Spaced repetition is a learning technique that leverages the principles of the Ebbinghaus Forgetting Curve to optimize memory retention. Instead of cramming information into our brains all at once, sp…
e-student.org
What Is the Ebbinghaus Forgetting Curve? – E-Student
13 février 2023 — The Ebbinghaus forgetting curve is a graph that depicts how the rate of human memory decay varies over time. Using strategic study methods such as active recall and spaced repetition helps you combat…
springer.com
Enhancing learning and retention through the distribution of practice …
3 octobre 2022 — In his seminal work on the spacing effect, Ebbinghaus found that fewer repetitions were needed to produce errorless memory 1 day after the completion of study when the repetitions were spaced across m…
chestergrant.com
Summary: The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg – Chester Grant
26 février 2021 — One paper published by a Duke University researcher in 2006 found that more than 40 percent of the actions people performed each day weren’t actual decisions, but habits. 2. Habits, scientists say, em…
apa.org
Harnessing the power of habits – American Psychological Association (APA)
1 novembre 2020 — At Duke University, Wood and her students observed that habits are learned associations between responses and aspects of the context under which the responses are performed, such as the physical locat…
deanbokhari.com
The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg : Book Summary – Dean Bokhari
15 novembre 2019 — One paper published by a Duke University researcher in 2006 found that more than 40 percent of the actions people performed each day weren’t actual decisions, but habits. James—like countless others,…
healthline.com
How Long Does It Actually Take to Form A New Habit?
24 octobre 2019 — According to a 2009 study published in the European Journal of Social Psychology, it takes 18 to 254 days for a person to form a new habit. The study also concluded that, on…
keystepmedia.com
The Neuroscience Behind Habit Change – Key Step Media
9 avril 2019 — That is where Self-Management, one of the four domains of Emotional Intelligence, comes into play. Researchers at Duke University found that more than 40% of our actions each day are based on habit ra…
examstudyexpert.com
Ebbinghaus’ Forgetting Curve Explained: The Importance Of Spaced …
15 mars 2019 — The famous “Ebbinghaus forgetting curve” measures just how fast we forget. I’m going to explain what Ebbinghaus’ curve is, and what you need to know about how it works, including the fascinating but t…
elitedaily.com
Scientists Say It Only Takes 66 Days To Change Your Life, If You’re …
6 octobre 2014 — In a study released in the European Journal of Social Psychology, Phillippa Lally and her team of researchers surveyed 96 people over a 12-week period to find exactly how long it takes…
sciencedaily.com
How we form habits, change existing ones | ScienceDaily
8 août 2014 — An important characteristic of a habit is that it’s automatic– we don’t always recognize
