Scientific Definition
Deriving general rules from specific examples; the leap from instance to concept.
Plain-English Definition
Deriving general rules from specific examples; the leap from instance to concept.
Feynman Explanation
A 'ball' is more abstract than 'this leather soccer ball'.
Core Principle
Deriving general rules from specific examples; the leap from instance to concept.
Mechanisms
Pending editorial review.
Deriving general rules from specific examples; the leap from instance to concept.
Pending editorial review.
Pending editorial review.
Pending editorial review.
Pending editorial review.
Strategy lives or dies by the right level of abstraction.
Inputs (Triggers)
Pending editorial review.
Outputs (Behaviors)
Pending editorial review.
Behavioral Signature
A 'ball' is more abstract than 'this leather soccer ball'.
Examples
- Treating 'customer' as a unified concept when you actually serve five distinct segments.
- Strategy lives or dies by the right level of abstraction.
Pending editorial review.
Famous Experiments
Pending editorial review.
Design Principles
- Periodically zoom in to concrete instances and verify the abstraction still fits.
Measurement Approaches
Pending editorial review.
Evidence
Pending editorial review.
Pending editorial review.
The Perverse Incentive Lens™
How this behavior is exploited — and how to redesign around it.
- Periodically zoom in to concrete instances and verify the abstraction still fits.
Pending editorial review.
Pending editorial review.
Interactive Mini Network
Click any neighbor to re-center the graph and follow the threads of connection.
Knowledge Graph Neighbors
Auto-linked to the rest of the Human Behavior Taxonomy by family, domain, dimension, and shared keywords.
The brain evolved to reason adaptively, not always truthfully, to reduce the cost of errors.
We solve problems by adding, even when subtracting would be better.
Assuming that if one option is true, another must be false, when both can be true.
Presuming a purposeful actor behind events that may have no actor at all.
What cannot be settled by experiment is not worth debating.
A finite set of well-defined instructions for solving a problem or performing a computation.
Every model simplifies reality; some are still useful.
Researchers favor conclusions aligned with their school, team, or sponsor.
Using personal stories or isolated examples instead of evidence.
Claiming something is true or better because most people believe it.
Assuming something is true because it is probable or possible.
Using an authority's opinion as evidence, regardless of its merits.