Scientific Definition
Match the target's current state, then gradually shift it toward the desired one.
Plain-English Definition
Match the target's current state, then gradually shift it toward the desired one.
Feynman Explanation
You can't push a rope or lead a stranger. Solve both with pacing first.
Core Principle
Match the target's current state, then gradually shift it toward the desired one.
Mechanisms
Pending editorial review.
Match the target's current state, then gradually shift it toward the desired one.
Pending editorial review.
Pending editorial review.
Pending editorial review.
Pending editorial review.
Change leadership, sales conversations, therapeutic settings.
Inputs (Triggers)
Pending editorial review.
Outputs (Behaviors)
Pending editorial review.
Behavioral Signature
You can't push a rope or lead a stranger. Solve both with pacing first.
Examples
- Milton Erickson's hypnotic practice, codified by Bandler & Grinder.
- Change leadership, sales conversations, therapeutic settings.
Pending editorial review.
Famous Experiments
Pending editorial review.
Design Principles
- Three pacing statements before one leading statement. Ratio matters.
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.
- Three pacing statements before one leading statement. Ratio matters.
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.
Subtly mirroring posture, breath, and language until the other person feels understood.
A group decides on a course of action that nobody actually wants, because everyone assumes others prefer it.
Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.
We attribute our own actions to situations but others' actions to their character.
We favor people who are similar to us or who like us.
Sacrificing for others without expecting a personal reward.
Masking the sponsors of a message to make it appear grassroots.
Disagreement grows more extreme as the parties think more about the issue.
Systematic errors in explaining the causes of behavior — yours or others'.
We accept vague, general statements as personally meaningful.
Adding the word 'because' (with any reason) increases compliance dramatically.
Behaviors spread through groups via observation and imitation.