We have proposed a conceptual framework aimed at providing a better understanding and possible improvement of the process of physics teacher formation. Existing literature on teacher preparation suggests that pre-service teachers (PSTs) learn best when they are immersed in a community, which shares a common vision of what good teaching entails, and helps PSTs develop requisite knowledge, skills, and dispositions consistent with that vision. However, the time pressures and complexities of the teaching profession are such that a teacher cannot afford multiple considerations and deliberations with oneself before every decision. We therefore suggest that good teacher preparation programs should, in addition to the requisite knowledge, skills and dispositions, strive to develop in PSTs productive habits (spontaneous responses to situational cues). In this paper, we propose a research agenda for testing the proposed framework in the context of physics teacher preparation. The agenda revolves around examples of teaching habits that illustrate the unique character of physics teaching.