Scientific Definition
Past investment should not influence future decisions.
Plain-English Definition
Past investment should not influence future decisions.
Feynman Explanation
It is gone. The only question is whether the next dollar is worth it.
Core Principle
Past investment should not influence future decisions.
Mechanisms
Pending editorial review.
Past investment should not influence future decisions.
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Sunk cost logic destroys capital allocation.
Inputs (Triggers)
Pending editorial review.
Outputs (Behaviors)
Pending editorial review.
Behavioral Signature
It is gone. The only question is whether the next dollar is worth it.
Examples
- Continuing a failing project because so much has already been spent.
- Sunk cost logic destroys capital allocation.
Pending editorial review.
Famous Experiments
Pending editorial review.
Design Principles
- Ask: 'If we were starting today, would we fund this?'
Measurement Approaches
Pending editorial review.
Evidence
Pending editorial review.
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The Perverse Incentive Lens™
How this behavior is exploited — and how to redesign around it.
- Ask: 'If we were starting today, would we fund this?'
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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.
Past investment is irrelevant to future decisions.
Every yes is a no to everything else competing for that hour, dollar, or slot.
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.