Scientific Definition
Choose the option whose worst-case regret is least bad.
Plain-English Definition
Choose the option whose worst-case regret is least bad.
Feynman Explanation
Sometimes the right call is the one you won't regret most.
Core Principle
Choose the option whose worst-case regret is least bad.
Mechanisms
Pending editorial review.
Choose the option whose worst-case regret is least bad.
Pending editorial review.
Pending editorial review.
Pending editorial review.
Pending editorial review.
Decisions where survival matters more than upside.
Inputs (Triggers)
Pending editorial review.
Outputs (Behaviors)
Pending editorial review.
Behavioral Signature
Sometimes the right call is the one you won't regret most.
Examples
- Risk-averse capital allocation.
- Decisions where survival matters more than upside.
Pending editorial review.
Famous Experiments
Pending editorial review.
Design Principles
- Use when ruin is on the table.
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.
- Use when ruin is on the table.
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 choose to minimize the regret we anticipate — not the expected value.
Choose the option you'll regret least at 80.
How will I feel about this in 10 minutes / 10 months / 10 years?
Inattention or forgetfulness caused by low attention, hyperfocus, or distraction.
Forgetting to compare an offer with the next-best alternative.
Outcomes that could have happened but did not.
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.