Scientific Definition
Institutions will try to preserve the problem to which they are the solution.
Plain-English Definition
Institutions will try to preserve the problem to which they are the solution.
Feynman Explanation
The fire department wants fires. The consultant wants complexity.
Core Principle
Institutions will try to preserve the problem to which they are the solution.
Mechanisms
Pending editorial review.
Institutions will try to preserve the problem to which they are the solution.
Pending editorial review.
Pending editorial review.
Pending editorial review.
Pending editorial review.
Self-preservation can conflict with mission success.
Inputs (Triggers)
Pending editorial review.
Outputs (Behaviors)
Pending editorial review.
Behavioral Signature
The fire department wants fires. The consultant wants complexity.
Examples
- A compliance team expands rules to justify its growth.
- Self-preservation can conflict with mission success.
Pending editorial review.
Famous Experiments
Pending editorial review.
Design Principles
- Measure teams by problem reduction, not activity.
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 teams by problem reduction, not activity.
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.
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Small visible disorders signal that bigger ones will be tolerated.
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Adding people to a late project makes it later.
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Nonlinear systems are highly sensitive to initial conditions.
Inputs combine under conditions to produce new outputs — sometimes irreversibly.
Software architecture mirrors org structure.