Scientific Definition
Assuming that if one option is true, another must be false, when both can be true.
Plain-English Definition
Assuming that if one option is true, another must be false, when both can be true.
Feynman Explanation
Or is not always exclusive.
Core Principle
Assuming that if one option is true, another must be false, when both can be true.
Mechanisms
Pending editorial review.
Assuming that if one option is true, another must be false, when both can be true.
Pending editorial review.
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False trade-offs dominate strategic conversations.
Inputs (Triggers)
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Outputs (Behaviors)
Pending editorial review.
Behavioral Signature
Or is not always exclusive.
Examples
- 'She is either ambitious or a team player' ignores that she can be both.
- False trade-offs dominate strategic conversations.
Pending editorial review.
Famous Experiments
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Design Principles
- Ask whether the two options are genuinely mutually exclusive.
Measurement Approaches
Pending editorial review.
Evidence
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Pending editorial review.
The Perverse Incentive Lens™
How this behavior is exploited — and how to redesign around it.
- Ask whether the two options are genuinely mutually exclusive.
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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.
Deriving general rules from specific examples; the leap from instance to concept.
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.
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.