Skip to main content
The Incentives Lab
HBT-COG-0324 · Dimension COG · Cognition

Flynn Effect

IQ scores have risen substantially over generations.

Learning·Mental Model·Grade B·draft· enriching…

Scientific Definition

IQ scores have risen substantially over generations.

Plain-English Definition

IQ scores have risen substantially over generations.

Feynman Explanation

The average person today would have been a genius a century ago.

Core Principle

IQ scores have risen substantially over generations.

Mechanisms

Psychological

Pending editorial review.

Behavioral Economic

IQ scores have risen substantially over generations.

Neurological

Pending editorial review.

Evolutionary

Pending editorial review.

Sociological

Pending editorial review.

Computational

Pending editorial review.

Systems

Talent pools are deeper than ever, but so are expectations.

Inputs (Triggers)

Pending editorial review.

Outputs (Behaviors)

Pending editorial review.

Behavioral Signature

The average person today would have been a genius a century ago.

Examples

Everyday
  • Abstract reasoning improves with education and environmental complexity.
Modern (Organizational)
  • Talent pools are deeper than ever, but so are expectations.
Historical

Pending editorial review.

Famous Experiments

Pending editorial review.

Design Principles

  • Raise the bar and invest in continuous learning.

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
Talent pools are deeper than ever, but so are expectations.
Amplifying Incentives
Talent pools are deeper than ever, but so are expectations.
Org Failure Modes
Talent pools are deeper than ever, but so are expectations.
Societal Failure Modes
Pending editorial review (HBT v1.0 auto-seed).
Ethical Considerations
Pending editorial review (HBT v1.0 auto-seed).
Redesign Strategies
Raise the bar and invest in continuous learning.
Diagnostic Questions
  • Raise the bar and invest in continuous learning.
Warning Signs

Pending editorial review.

Red Flags

Pending editorial review.

Intervention Playbook
Individual
Raise the bar and invest in continuous learning.
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-0324 · COG
Flynn Effect
FEAQAdaptability Quotien…AKAndragogy (Knowles)AAAttention as Trainab…BMBeginner's MindBEBizarreness EffectBTBloom's TaxonomyBMBlue Mind (Nichols)CPChange Personal Hist…ChChunkingCCChunking (Cognitive)

Knowledge Graph Neighbors

Auto-linked to the rest of the Human Behavior Taxonomy by family, domain, dimension, and shared keywords.

Same family
HBT-COG-0101Bizarreness Effect

Unusual or bizarre material is more memorable than common material.

Same family
HBT-COG-0184Continued Influence Effect

Believing previously learned misinformation even after it has been corrected.

Same family
HBT-COG-0202Crespi Effect

A conditioned response changes disproportionately when reinforcement changes.

Same family
HBT-COG-0284Explanation Effect

Forcing yourself to explain a concept reveals exactly where your understanding is hollow.

Same family
HBT-COG-0306Fan Effect

As more facts are learned about a topic, retrieving any one fact slows.

Same family
HBT-COG-0697Von Restorff Effect

Items that stand out are more likely to be remembered.

Same family
HBT-COG-0011Adaptability Quotient (AQ)

Your capacity to learn, unlearn, and relearn faster than the environment changes.

Same family
HBT-COG-0037Andragogy (Knowles)

Malcolm Knowles's principles of adult learning: self-direction, experience as resource, readiness, problem-centered orientation, intrinsic motivation.

Same family
HBT-COG-0069Attention as Trainable Resource (Jha)

Amishi Jha's research: attention is a finite, depletable, but trainable cognitive resource — short daily mindfulness measurably improves it.

Same family
HBT-COG-0092Beginner's Mind

Approach a situation as if you knew nothing.

Same family
HBT-COG-0103Bloom's Taxonomy

Hierarchy of cognitive learning: Remember → Understand → Apply → Analyze → Evaluate → Create. Benjamin Bloom, 1956 (revised 2001).

Same family
HBT-COG-0104Blue Mind (Nichols)

Wallace J. Nichols: proximity to water reliably shifts the nervous system toward a calmer, more creative state.

Version History

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