Scientific Definition
We judge experiences by their peak moment and how they ended.
Plain-English Definition
We judge experiences by their peak moment and how they ended.
Feynman Explanation
Last impressions overwrite first ones overwrite reality.
Core Principle
We judge experiences by their peak moment and how they ended.
Mechanisms
We judge experiences by their peak moment and how they ended.
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Inputs (Triggers)
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Outputs (Behaviors)
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Behavioral Signature
Last impressions overwrite first ones overwrite reality.
Examples
- A 12-month project remembered entirely by its last two weeks.
- Strategy reviews dominated by the most recent meeting.
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Famous Experiments
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Design Principles
- Look at the full distribution of outcomes, not the highlight reel.
Measurement Approaches
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Evidence
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The Perverse Incentive Lens™
How this behavior is exploited — and how to redesign around it.
- Look at the full distribution of outcomes, not the highlight reel.
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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 judge frequency by how easily examples come to mind.
We remember our past choices as better than they were.
Believing past events were obviously predictable once we know how they ended.
Overweighting whatever just happened.
We remember the past as better than it was.
Doing something feels safer than doing nothing — even when nothing wins.
Feelings act as shortcuts for facts.
We prefer known risks to unknown ones, even when the unknown is better.
Over-reliance on the first number that hits the table.
Perceiving meaningful connections in unrelated things.
We ignore underlying probabilities in favor of vivid specifics.
People look better in groups than as individuals.