Scientific Definition
The threat of retaliation suppresses legitimate speech or action.
Plain-English Definition
The threat of retaliation suppresses legitimate speech or action.
Feynman Explanation
Fear does not need to punish everyone. It just needs to be believable.
Core Principle
The threat of retaliation suppresses legitimate speech or action.
Mechanisms
Pending editorial review.
The threat of retaliation suppresses legitimate speech or action.
Pending editorial review.
Pending editorial review.
Pending editorial review.
Pending editorial review.
Culture is shaped by what people fear will happen if they speak up.
Inputs (Triggers)
Pending editorial review.
Outputs (Behaviors)
Pending editorial review.
Behavioral Signature
Fear does not need to punish everyone. It just needs to be believable.
Examples
- Employees stop raising concerns because one whistleblower was punished.
- Culture is shaped by what people fear will happen if they speak up.
Pending editorial review.
Famous Experiments
Pending editorial review.
Design Principles
- Protect dissenters visibly and punish retaliation clearly.
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.
- Protect dissenters visibly and punish retaliation clearly.
Pending editorial review.
Pending editorial review.
Interactive Mini Network
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Knowledge Graph Neighbors
Auto-linked to the rest of the Human Behavior Taxonomy by family, domain, dimension, and shared keywords.
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Subconscious preference for numbers (and letters) that appear in our own name or birthday.
A persuasive message produces the opposite of its intended effect.
Higher rates of mistreatment toward stepchildren than biological children.
Renewed interest in a stimulus when a novel stimulus is introduced.
We recognize faces from our own race more accurately than others.
Underestimating how common our positive traits and behaviors are.
We accept vague, positive personality descriptions as highly accurate.
People change behavior when they know they are being observed.
Competent people become more likable after a small visible mistake.
A group decides on a course of action that nobody actually wants, because everyone assumes others prefer it.