Scientific Definition
Forgetting to compare an offer with the next-best alternative.
Plain-English Definition
Forgetting to compare an offer with the next-best alternative.
Feynman Explanation
A great deal compared to what?
Core Principle
Forgetting to compare an offer with the next-best alternative.
Mechanisms
Pending editorial review.
Forgetting to compare an offer with the next-best alternative.
Pending editorial review.
Pending editorial review.
Pending editorial review.
Pending editorial review.
Every yes is implicitly a no to the next option you didn't price.
Inputs (Triggers)
Pending editorial review.
Outputs (Behaviors)
Pending editorial review.
Behavioral Signature
A great deal compared to what?
Examples
- Approving a vendor renewal because the price 'looks good' without re-bidding.
- Every yes is implicitly a no to the next option you didn't price.
Pending editorial review.
Famous Experiments
Pending editorial review.
Design Principles
- Require at least one named alternative on every material decision.
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.
- Require at least one named alternative on every material decision.
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.
Outcomes that could have happened but did not.
We miss unexpected events when focused on something else.
How will I feel about this in 10 minutes / 10 months / 10 years?
Inattention or forgetfulness caused by low attention, hyperfocus, or distraction.
Overthinking a situation so that decision-making stalls.
The first number on the table silently sets the range for every number after it.
Tversky & Kahneman's classic: identical outcomes flip from 'risk averse' to 'risk seeking' when framed as lives saved vs. lives lost.
Our perception is shaped by what we selectively pay attention to.
Favoring suggestions from automated systems over conflicting human judgment.
A color appears different depending on adjacent colors.
Decisions are constrained by available information, cognitive limits, and time.
The ability to focus on one voice in a noisy environment.