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The Incentives Lab
HBT-SYS-0017 · Dimension SYS · Systems

Learn-Do-Teach Loop

Three-stage cycle: learn by seeing, learn by doing, learn by teaching — looped continuously.

Learning·Mental Model·Grade B·draft· enriching…

Scientific Definition

Three-stage cycle: learn by seeing, learn by doing, learn by teaching — looped continuously.

Plain-English Definition

Three-stage cycle: learn by seeing, learn by doing, learn by teaching — looped continuously.

Feynman Explanation

Skip the teach step and you'll relearn the same lesson next year.

Core Principle

Three-stage cycle: learn by seeing, learn by doing, learn by teaching — looped continuously.

Mechanisms

Psychological

Pending editorial review.

Behavioral Economic

Three-stage cycle: learn by seeing, learn by doing, learn by teaching — looped continuously.

Neurological

Pending editorial review.

Evolutionary

Pending editorial review.

Sociological

Pending editorial review.

Computational

Pending editorial review.

Systems

Embed in onboarding: every new hire learns, applies, then teaches the next cohort.

Inputs (Triggers)

Pending editorial review.

Outputs (Behaviors)

Pending editorial review.

Behavioral Signature

Skip the teach step and you'll relearn the same lesson next year.

Examples

Everyday
  • Eben Pagan's documented decade of compounding through Learn-Do-Teach.
Modern (Organizational)
  • Embed in onboarding: every new hire learns, applies, then teaches the next cohort.
Historical

Pending editorial review.

Famous Experiments

Pending editorial review.

Design Principles

  • Audit your weekly time: are all three present? If not, restructure.

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
Embed in onboarding: every new hire learns, applies, then teaches the next cohort.
Amplifying Incentives
Embed in onboarding: every new hire learns, applies, then teaches the next cohort.
Org Failure Modes
Embed in onboarding: every new hire learns, applies, then teaches the next cohort.
Societal Failure Modes
Pending editorial review (HBT v1.0 auto-seed).
Ethical Considerations
Pending editorial review (HBT v1.0 auto-seed).
Redesign Strategies
Audit your weekly time: are all three present? If not, restructure.
Diagnostic Questions
  • Audit your weekly time: are all three present? If not, restructure.
Warning Signs

Pending editorial review.

Red Flags

Pending editorial review.

Intervention Playbook
Individual
Audit your weekly time: are all three present? If not, restructure.
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
Pending editorial review (HBT v1.0 auto-seed).
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-SYS-0017 · SYS
Learn-Do-Teach Loop
LLDLDouble-Loop LearningSLSingle Loop vs. Doub…SVSingle-Loop vs Doubl…CLConstructivism (Lear…DPDeliberate PracticeFLFelder-Silverman Lea…HMHoney & Mumford Lear…KEKolb's Experiential …LHLearned HelplessnessLCLearning Curve

Knowledge Graph Neighbors

Auto-linked to the rest of the Human Behavior Taxonomy by family, domain, dimension, and shared keywords.

Version History

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