Scientific Definition
People change behavior when they know they are being observed.
Plain-English Definition
People change behavior when they know they are being observed.
Feynman Explanation
The act of measuring often changes what is measured.
Core Principle
People change behavior when they know they are being observed.
Mechanisms
Pending editorial review.
People change behavior when they know they are being observed.
Pending editorial review.
Pending editorial review.
Pending editorial review.
Pending editorial review.
Pilot results often overstate long-term impact.
Inputs (Triggers)
Pending editorial review.
Outputs (Behaviors)
Pending editorial review.
Behavioral Signature
The act of measuring often changes what is measured.
Examples
- Productivity rises when a new monitoring system is installed, then fades.
- Pilot results often overstate long-term impact.
Pending editorial review.
Famous Experiments
Pending editorial review.
Design Principles
- Measure unobtrusively and include a control period.
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.
- Measure unobtrusively and include a control period.
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.
We accept vague, general statements as personally meaningful.
We come to like people we've done a favor for, more than people who've helped us.
Subconscious preference for numbers (and letters) that appear in our own name or birthday.
A persuasive message produces the opposite of its intended effect.
The threat of retaliation suppresses legitimate speech or action.
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.
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.