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The Incentives Lab
HBT-IDN-0022 · Dimension IDN · Identity

Self-Serving Bias

Wins are ours; losses are circumstantial.

Self Bias·Cognitive Bias·Grade B·draft· enriching…

Scientific Definition

Wins are ours; losses are circumstantial.

Plain-English Definition

Wins are ours; losses are circumstantial.

Feynman Explanation

The market is brilliant when we beat it and irrational when it beats us.

Core Principle

Wins are ours; losses are circumstantial.

Mechanisms

Psychological

Wins are ours; losses are circumstantial.

Behavioral Economic

Pending editorial review.

Neurological

Pending editorial review.

Evolutionary

Pending editorial review.

Sociological

Pending editorial review.

Computational

Pending editorial review.

Systems

Pending editorial review.

Inputs (Triggers)

Pending editorial review.

Outputs (Behaviors)

Pending editorial review.

Behavioral Signature

The market is brilliant when we beat it and irrational when it beats us.

Examples

Everyday
  • Q1 success: 'leadership.' Q2 miss: 'macro headwinds.'
Modern (Organizational)
  • Lessons are lost because the loss didn't really belong to us.
Historical

Pending editorial review.

Famous Experiments

Pending editorial review.

Design Principles

  • Standing rule: same attribution framework for wins and losses.

Measurement Approaches

Pending editorial review.

Evidence

Evidence Grade
B (A strongest → E speculative)
Replication
★★★☆☆
Intervention Confidence
3 / 5
Consensus
Pending editorial review (HBT v1.0 auto-seed).
Limitations
Pending editorial review (HBT v1.0 auto-seed).
Open Research Questions

Pending editorial review.

Primary References

Pending editorial review.

Signature Section

The Perverse Incentive Lens™

How this behavior is exploited — and how to redesign around it.

Exploitation
AI wins claimed by execs, AI failures blamed on vendors.
Amplifying Incentives
Lessons are lost because the loss didn't really belong to us.
Org Failure Modes
Lessons are lost because the loss didn't really belong to us.
Societal Failure Modes
Pending editorial review (HBT v1.0 auto-seed).
Ethical Considerations
Pending editorial review (HBT v1.0 auto-seed).
Redesign Strategies
Standing rule: same attribution framework for wins and losses.
Diagnostic Questions
  • Standing rule: same attribution framework for wins and losses.
Warning Signs

Pending editorial review.

Red Flags

Pending editorial review.

Intervention Playbook
Individual
Standing rule: same attribution framework for wins and losses.
Team
Pending editorial review (HBT v1.0 auto-seed).
Organization
Pending editorial review (HBT v1.0 auto-seed).
Policy
Pending editorial review (HBT v1.0 auto-seed).
AI Implications
Detection
AI wins claimed by execs, AI failures blamed on vendors.
Measurement
Pending editorial review (HBT v1.0 auto-seed).
Mitigation
Pending editorial review (HBT v1.0 auto-seed).
Responsible Use
Pending editorial review (HBT v1.0 auto-seed).

Interactive Mini Network

Click any neighbor to re-center the graph and follow the threads of connection.

HBT-IDN-0022 · IDN
Self-Serving Bias
SBBBBias Blind SpotDEDunning-Kruger EffectEGEmpathy GapIOIllusion of ControlIOIllusion of ValidityISIllusory SuperiorityOEOstrich EffectOEOverconfidence EffectPBProjection BiasRBRestraint Bias

Knowledge Graph Neighbors

Version History

v1.1.0 · 2026-06-28Initial auto-seed from corpus.