hooked-ux

What this skill does

# Hook Model Framework

Framework for building habit-forming products. Based on a fundamental truth: habits are not created—they are built through successive cycles through the Hook.

## Core Principle

**The Hook Model** = a four-phase process that connects the user's problem to your solution frequently enough to form a habit.

```
Trigger → Action → Variable Reward → Investment
    ↑                                      │
    └──────────────────────────────────────┘
```

**Habit Zone:** Products enter the "habit zone" when used frequently enough and with enough perceived value. The goal is to move users from deliberate usage to automatic, habitual behavior.

## Scoring

**Goal: 10/10.** When reviewing or creating product engagement mechanics, rate them 0-10 based on adherence to the principles below. A 10/10 means full alignment with all guidelines; lower scores indicate gaps to address. Always provide the current score and specific improvements needed to reach 10/10.

## The Four Phases

### 1. Trigger

**Core concept:** The actuator of behavior. What prompts the user to take action? Triggers come in two forms: external (environment-driven) and internal (emotion-driven). The ultimate goal is to move users from external triggers to internal triggers.

**Why it works:** Every habit starts with a cue. Without a trigger, there is no behavior. External triggers get users started, but internal triggers — emotions like boredom, loneliness, uncertainty, or fear of missing out — are what drive unprompted, habitual usage. When your product becomes the automatic response to an internal trigger, you have a habit.

**Key insights:**

- External triggers (push notifications, emails, buttons, ads, word of mouth) initiate behavior early on
- Internal triggers (emotions, routines, situations) are the ultimate goal — users prompt themselves
- The goal is to move users from external triggers to internal triggers over time
- Map your product to the specific negative emotion it resolves (boredom, loneliness, confusion, FOMO)
- Effective external triggers must be well-timed, actionable, and lead to the simplest possible next action

**Product applications:**

| Context | Application | Example |
|---------|-------------|---------|
| **Onboarding** | Use external triggers to establish first loop | Welcome email with one clear action to take |
| **Retention** | Map product to internal emotional trigger | Instagram resolves boredom; Google resolves confusion |
| **Re-engagement** | External triggers bridge gaps until habit forms | Push notification: "Your friend just posted a photo" |
| **Emotion mapping** | Identify which negative emotion your product addresses | Loneliness → Facebook; Uncertainty → Twitter/News apps |
| **Trigger audit** | Evaluate if users still need external prompts | If yes after 30 days, internal trigger hasn't formed |

**Copy patterns:**

- "You might be wondering about..." (hooks into uncertainty)
- "Don't miss what happened while you were away" (FOMO trigger)
- "Your friend just..." (social/external trigger bridging to internal)
- "Pick up where you left off" (routine trigger)
- Notification copy should name the emotion: "Curious what's new?"

**Ethical boundary:** Never exploit vulnerable emotional states (depression, addiction, grief) as triggers. Triggers should connect users to genuine value, not manufacture anxiety to drive opens.

See: [references/triggers.md](references/triggers.md) for detailed trigger design, emotion mapping, and external-to-internal transition strategies.

### 2. Action

**Core concept:** The simplest behavior done in anticipation of a reward. Guided by the Fogg Behavior Model: B = MAT (Behavior = Motivation + Ability + Trigger). All three must converge at the same moment for action to occur.

**Why it works:** Increasing motivation is hard and unreliable. Reducing friction (increasing ability) is easier and often more effective. The key insight is that making the action simpler is almost always a better strategy than trying to increase motivation. Every extra step, field, or decision is a point where users drop off.

**Key insights:**

- Fogg Behavior Model: Behavior = Motivation x Ability x Trigger — all three must be present simultaneously
- Six elements of simplicity (ability): time, money, physical effort, brain cycles, social deviance, non-routine
- Increasing ability (reducing friction) is almost always more effective than increasing motivation
- The action should be the simplest behavior in anticipation of the reward — not the full task
- Hick's Law: more choices = slower decisions; reduce options to increase action rate

**Product applications:**

| Context | Application | Example |
|---------|-------------|---------|
| **Signup flow** | Minimize fields and steps to reduce friction | One-click Google/Apple sign-in instead of form |
| **Core action** | Make the key behavior completable in seconds | Twitter: type 280 characters and post (vs. write a blog) |
| **Simplicity audit** | Evaluate each of the six ability factors | Can user complete core action in under 60 seconds? |
| **Progressive disclosure** | Ask for more only after initial reward | Duolingo: play first, create account later |
| **Friction removal** | Identify and eliminate unnecessary steps | Autocomplete, defaults, skip options, smart prefills |

**Copy patterns:**

- "Just one tap to..." (emphasizes simplicity)
- "Takes less than 60 seconds" (time simplicity)
- "No credit card required" (money/risk simplicity)
- "We've set up defaults for you" (brain cycle simplicity)
- Buttons should be verbs: "Post", "Save", "Share" — not "Submit" or "Continue"

**Ethical boundary:** Reducing friction should make genuinely valuable actions easier — not trick users into actions they'd regret. Dark patterns that hide costs or consequences behind simple actions are unethical.

See: [references/triggers.md](references/triggers.md) for how triggers connect to the action phase, and [references/product-applications.md](references/product-applications.md) for action design across product types.

### 3. Variable Reward

**Core concept:** The phase that keeps users coming back. The anticipation of reward — not the reward itself — creates dopamine. Critically, rewards must be variable (unpredictable) to maintain engagement. Predictable rewards lose their power over time.

**Why it works:** The brain's dopamine system responds most strongly to the anticipation of uncertain rewards, not to the rewards themselves. This is the slot machine effect: variable reinforcement schedules are far more engaging than fixed ones. Three types of variable rewards — tribe (social), hunt (resources), and self (mastery) — tap into fundamental human drives.

**Key insights:**

- Dopamine spikes during anticipation of uncertain reward, not upon receiving it
- Three types: Tribe (social validation), Hunt (search for resources/information), Self (personal mastery)
- Predictable rewards lose power; variability is what sustains engagement
- The "slot machine effect": uncertainty is what makes rewards compelling
- Autonomy is critical — users must feel in control; forced engagement backfires
- Finite variability (limited content) eventually becomes predictable; aim for infinite variability

**Product applications:**

| Context | Application | Example |
|---------|-------------|---------|
| **Social features (Tribe)** | Variable social validation from others | Instagram likes, Reddit upvotes — you never know how many |
| **Content feeds (Hunt)** | Unpredictable stream of resources/information | Infinite scroll with algorithmically varied content |
| **Gamification (Self)** | Personal accomplishment with variable difficulty | Duolingo streaks + surprise bonus challenges |
| **Notifications** | Variable content in each notification | "3 people liked your post" vs. "Sarah commented something surprising" |
| **Search/Discovery** | The hunt for the next great find | Pinterest: scroll to find the perfec