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The Incentives Lab
HBT-COG-0169 · Dimension COG · Cognition

Composition Fallacy

What's true of the parts is assumed true of the whole.

Definition Fallacy·Logical Fallacy·Grade B·stub· enriching…

Scientific Definition

What's true of the parts is assumed true of the whole.

Plain-English Definition

What's true of the parts is assumed true of the whole.

Feynman Explanation

Each ingredient is great. The dish is poison.

Core Principle

What's true of the parts is assumed true of the whole.

Mechanisms

Psychological

What's true of the parts is assumed true of the whole.

Behavioral Economic

Pending editorial review.

Neurological

Pending editorial review.

Evolutionary

Pending editorial review.

Sociological

Pending editorial review.

Computational

Pending editorial review.

Systems

Pending editorial review.

Inputs (Triggers)

Pending editorial review.

Outputs (Behaviors)

Pending editorial review.

Behavioral Signature

Each ingredient is great. The dish is poison.

Examples

Everyday
  • Every team is high-performing; the company still misses its number.
Modern (Organizational)
  • Aggregate-level dysfunction missed because the parts are 'fine.'
Historical

Pending editorial review.

Famous Experiments

Pending editorial review.

Design Principles

Pending editorial review.

Measurement Approaches

Pending editorial review.

Evidence

Evidence Grade
B (A strongest → E speculative)
Replication
★★★☆☆
Intervention Confidence
3 / 5
Consensus
Pending editorial review (HBT v1.0 auto-seed).
Limitations
Pending editorial review (HBT v1.0 auto-seed).
Open Research Questions

Pending editorial review.

Primary References

Pending editorial review.

Signature Section

The Perverse Incentive Lens™

How this behavior is exploited — and how to redesign around it.

Exploitation
Aggregate-level dysfunction missed because the parts are 'fine.'
Amplifying Incentives
Aggregate-level dysfunction missed because the parts are 'fine.'
Org Failure Modes
Aggregate-level dysfunction missed because the parts are 'fine.'
Societal Failure Modes
Pending editorial review (HBT v1.0 auto-seed).
Ethical Considerations
Pending editorial review (HBT v1.0 auto-seed).
Redesign Strategies
Pending editorial review (HBT v1.0 auto-seed).
Diagnostic Questions

Pending editorial review.

Warning Signs

Pending editorial review.

Red Flags

Pending editorial review.

Intervention Playbook
Individual
Pending editorial review (HBT v1.0 auto-seed).
Team
Pending editorial review (HBT v1.0 auto-seed).
Organization
Pending editorial review (HBT v1.0 auto-seed).
Policy
Pending editorial review (HBT v1.0 auto-seed).
AI Implications
Detection
Pending editorial review (HBT v1.0 auto-seed).
Measurement
Pending editorial review (HBT v1.0 auto-seed).
Mitigation
Pending editorial review (HBT v1.0 auto-seed).
Responsible Use
Pending editorial review (HBT v1.0 auto-seed).

Interactive Mini Network

Click any neighbor to re-center the graph and follow the threads of connection.

HBT-COG-0169 · COG
Composition Fallacy
CFBTBegging the QuestionCRCircular ReasoningCFContinuum FallacyDRDefinitional RetreatDFDivision FallacyETEither-Or Trap (more…EFEtymological FallacyFEFalse EquivalenceMGMiddle Ground FallacyMFMoralistic Fallacy

Knowledge Graph Neighbors

Version History

v1.1.0 · 2026-06-28Initial auto-seed from corpus.