Reference
A growing reference library of concepts, ideas, and mental models
Pick a letter to browse
0–9
A
Abductive Reasoning
A form of logical inference which starts with an observation or set of observati
Abilene Paradox
A management term where people make decisions based not on what they actually wa
Abstinence Violation Defect
Cognitive-behavioral phenomenon that occurs when an individual who is trying to
Accessibility
The design of products, devices, services, or environments for people with disab
Accidental Complexity
Programming tasks which could be eliminated with better tools (as opposed to ess
Achilles Heel
A weakness in spite of overall strength, which can lead to downfall.
Action at a Distance
The concept that an object can be moved, changed, or otherwise affected without
Activation Energy
The minimum energy which must be available to a chemical system with potential r
Ad Hominem
Attacking an opponent's character or personal traits in an attempt to undermine
Adaptive Bias
The notion that the human brain has evolved to reason adaptively, rather than tr
Adaptive System
A set of interacting or interdependent entities, real or abstract, forming an in
Advance Organizer
A learning tool used to introduce a topic and illustrate the relationship betwee
Adverse Selection
The tendency for traders with better private information about the quality of a
Aesthetic-Usability Effect
The phenomenon where users are more tolerant of minor usability issues when they
Aesthetic–usability Effect
Phenomenon observed in user experience design and human-computer interaction tha
Affect Heuristic
A mental shortcut that allows people to make decisions and solve problems quickl
Affective Forecasting
The prediction of one's affect (emotional state) in the future.
Algorithm
A specification of how to solve a class of problems — can be a calculation, a pr
Amara's Law
The adage of overestimating the effect of a technology in the short run and unde
Ambiguity Effect
A cognitive bias where decision making is affected by a lack of information, or
Ambiguous Middle Term
A categorical syllogism that uses an ambiguous middle term to make its three-par
Amor Fati
An attitude in which one sees everything that happens in life (including sufferi
Analysis Paralysis
A project stalled in the analysis phase, unable to achieve support for any of th
Anchoring
A cognitive bias that describes the tendency for an individual to rely too heavi
Anecdotal Fallacy
The fallacy to argue for evidence from anecdotes such as informal testimony or p
Anna Karenina Principle
Principle that states that successful outcomes require all relevant factors to b
Ansatz
An educated guess that is verified later by its results.
Anscombe's Quartet
An illustration of the difficulty of data visualization where four datasets that
Anthropocentric Thinking
The belief that human beings are the most important entity in the universe, and
Anthropomorphism
The tendency to characterize animals, objects, and abstract concepts as possessi
Anti-Bandwagon Effect
A phenomenon whereby the rate of uptake of beliefs, ideas, fads and trends \*dec
Anti-Pattern
A common response to a recurring problem that is usually ineffective and risks b
Antifragile
System or entity that not only resists stress and uncertainty but actually thriv
Apanthropy
Withdrawal or alienation from society or human interaction, often as a result of
Apophenia
The tendency to mistakenly perceive connections and meaning between unrelated th
Appeal to Accomplishment
An assertion is deemed true or false based on the accomplishments of the propose
Appeal to Emotion
Manipulating an emotional response in place of a valid or compelling argument.
Appeal to Novelty
A fallacy in which one prematurely claims that an idea or proposal is correct or
Appeal to Probability Fallacy
Takes something for granted because it would \*probably\* be the case (or might
Appeasement
A diplomatic policy of making political or material concessions to an enemy powe
Apples to Oranges
An idiom that refers to the apparent differences between items which are popular
Arbitrage
The practice of taking advantage of a price difference between two or more marke
Archetype
A model, prototype, statement, pattern of behavior, which other models, objects,
Archimedean Point
Hypothetical vantage point from which an observer can objectively perceive the s
Arguing from Innocence
Falsely assuming that a conclusion can be reached on the basis of the absence of
Argument from Fallacy
The formal fallacy of analyzing an argument and inferring that, since it contain
Arrow's Impossibility Theorem
When voters have three or more distinct alternatives (options), no ranked order
Ashby's Law of Requisite Variety
The notion that the degree of control of a system is proportional to the amount
Assembly Bonus Effect
The phenomenon where the group performance exceeds the combined contributions of
Asymptote
In geometry, an asymptote of a curve is a line such that the distance between th
Attentional Bias
The tendency for people's perception to be affected by their recurring thoughts
Attractiveness Bias
A tendency, described by psychologists, to assume that people who are physically
Attribute Substitution
A psychological process occurs when an individual has to make a judgment that is
Attribution Theory
The broad process by which individuals explain the causes of behavior and events
Attrition Warfare
A military strategy in which a belligerent party attempts to win a war by wearin
Audience Effect
The tendency for people to perform differently when in the presence of others th
Authority Bias
The tendency to attribute greater accuracy and authority to the opinion of an au
Automation Bias
The propensity for humans to favor suggestions from automated decision-making sy
Autopoiesis
A system capable of reproducing and maintaining itself.
Availability Bias
The bias that people tend to heavily weigh their judgments toward more recent in
Availability Cascade
A self-reinforcing cycle that explains the development of certain kinds of colle
Awkmerge
The discomfort of walking next to a stranger who is keeping pace with you, after
B
Baader-Meinhof Phenomenon
The illusion in which a word, a name, or other thing that has recently come to o
Backfire Effect
Cognitive bias that causes people who encounter evidence which challenges their
Bad Product Fallacy
A product development fallacy where personal use cases and opinions are conflate
Bandwagon Effect
A phenomenon whereby the rate of uptake of beliefs, ideas, fads and trends incre
Barnum Effect
A psychological phenomenon whereby individuals give high accuracy ratings to des
Barriers to Entry
A cost that must be incurred by a new entrant into a market that incumbents don'
Base Rate Fallacy
If presented with related base rate information (i.e. generic, general informati
Bathtub Curve
Used in reliability engineering, it describes a particular form of the hazard fu
Bayes' Theorem
Mode of applying probability where rather than thinking in terms of frequency or
Begging the Question
Providing what is essentially the conclusion of the argument as a premise.
Belief Bias
The tendency to judge the strength of arguments based on the plausibility of the
Ben Franklin Effect
A proposed psychological phenomenon where a person who has already performed a f
Benford's Law
An observation about the frequency distribution of leading digits in many real-l
Beochaoineadh
A sorrowful lament or toast for someone who is alive, but who has gone away or i
Berkson's Paradox
A counterintuitive result in conditional probability and statistics where there
Best Alternative to a Negotiated Agreement (BATNA)
The best expected outcome for a party when/if negotiations fail. Must be conside
Betteridge's Law of Headlines
Adage named after British technology journalist Ian Betteridge that states "Any
Bezold Effect
An optical illusion where a color may appear different depending on its relation
Bias Blind Spot
The cognitive bias of recognizing the impact of biases on the judgment of others
Big Ball of Mud
In software, refers to a system with no recognizable structure or lacks a cohere
Bildungsroman
Literary genre that focuses on the coming-of-age or personal development of a pr
Biomimicry
The imitation of models, systems, and characteristics found in nature, often for
Biophilia Effect
Where biophilia means "love of life" (an affinity for living things and the natu
Birthday-Number Effect
The subconscious tendency of people to prefer the numbers in the date of their b
Bisociation
A blending of elements drawn from two previously unrelated domains into a new pa
Black Box
A system or device whose inner workings are opaque and whose internal workings c
Bleeding Edge
The concept of technologies that are still untested or unstable and at the front
Blind Experiment
An experiment in which information about the test is masked (kept) from the part
Boiled Frog
An anecdote describing a frog in a pot of water where the water's temperature is
Boomerang Effect
The unintended consequence of trying to persuade someone of something only to re
Boots on the Ground
The belief that military success can only be achieved through the direct physica
Bouba Effect
A mapping between speech sounds and the visual shape of objects which might be u
Boundary Extension
Remembering the background of an image as being larger or more expansive than th
Bounded Optimality
The notion of optimizing not the action that is taken but the algorithm that is
Bounded Rationality
Decision-makers are limited in their rationality by the cognitive limitations of
Bovine Mystique
The erroneous assumption that low-income and developing economies harbor an irra
Brandolini's Law
Internet adage recognizing that "the amount of energy needed to refute bullshit
Bricolage
Construction or creation of a work from a diverse range of things that happen to
Broken Windows Theory
The theory that maintaining and monitoring urban environments to prevent small c
Brooks' Law
The software development principle that adding more resources to a project actua
Bulletproof Glass Effect
Phenomenon in which an individual or group is protected from criticism or negati
Bullwhip Effect
The economic situation of increasing swings in inventory in response to shifts i
Bulverism
The act of inferring why an argument is being used, associating it to some psych
Bus Factor
Aa measurement of the risk resulting from information and capabilities being los
Busy Waiting
Wasting time and resources or consuming processing units while waiting for somet
Butterfly Logic
The notion that a connection implies causality, with one earlier event being the
Buyer’s Remorse
Feeling of regret or anxiety that a person may experience after making a purchas
Bystander Effect
A social psychological phenomenon in which individuals are less likely to offer
C
Call of the Void
The experience of a sudden urge to act on an impulse that is precisely what your
Campbell's Law
The adage that "the more any quantitative social indicator is used for social de
Cargo Cult
A movement first described in Melanesia which encompasses a range of practices a
Carrots and Sticks
A policy of offering a combination of rewards and punishments to induce appropri
Cascading Failure
A process in a system of interconnected parts in which the failure of one or few
Case-Based Reasoning
The process of solving new problems based on the solutions of similar past probl
Cash Cow
A profitable legacy product that often leads to complacency about new products.
Catallaxy
The spontaneous order of the market — from the market coordination of human acti
Catalyst
In chemistry, it is a substance which increases the rate of a reaction (or to en
Catch-22
A paradoxical situation with contradictory rules or logic.
Cathedral Effect
The laboratory-measured positive effect on creativity that high ceilings exhibit
Central Limit Theorem
In probability, when independent random variables are added, their properly norm
Change Bias
After an investment of effort in producing change, remembering one's past perfor
Cheerleader Effect
The cognitive bias which causes people to think individuals are more attractive
Chekhov's Gun
A principle most often seen in drama that states that every element in a story m
Cherry Picking
The act of pointing at individual cases or data that seem to confirm a particula
Chesterton's Fence
Principle that suggests before changing or removing something, it is essential t
Chilling Effect
The impact that coercion, or threat of coercion, can have in stifling specific b
Choice Overload
A cognitive process in which people have a difficult time making a decision when
Choice-Supportive Bias
A cognitive bias describing a tendency to retroactively ascribe positive attribu
Chronological Snobbery
An argument that the art, science, or thinking of an earlier time is inherently
Chronostasis
A type of time illusion in which the first impression following the introduction
Chunking
In cognitive psychology, a process by which individual pieces of information are
Churn
An evolutionary hypothesis which proposes that organisms must constantly adapt,
Circular Reasoning
The reasoner begins with what he or she is trying to end up with.
Clarke's Third Law
The observation by the science fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke that "Any suffici
Classical Conditioning
A learning procedure in which a biologically potent stimulus (e.g. food) is pair
Clustering Illusion
The tendency to erroneously consider the inevitable "streaks" or "clusters" aris
Coase Theorem
If trade in an externality is possible and there are sufficiently low transactio
Cocktail Party Effect
The phenomenon of the brain's ability to focus one's auditory attention on a par
Coding by Exception
Adding new code to handle each special case as it is recognized.
Cognitive Biases
The overarching term for all tendencies to think in certain ways that can lead t
Cognitive Dissonance
The mental discomfort experienced by a person who simultaneously holds two or mo
Cognitive Estrangement
Technique used in art and literature to disrupt and challenge the reader's or vi
Collateral Damage
The damage inflicted on an unintended target or targets — often used in a milita
Collective Effervescence
A sociological concept where a community or society may at times come together a
Common Fate
A Gestalt principle that stimulus elements are likely to be perceived as a unit
Comparative Advantage
The economic principle where an agent has an advantage over another when a parti
Complex System
A system composed of many components which may interact with each other. Example
Complexity Bias
A logical fallacy that leads us to give undue credence to complex concepts.
Compound Growth
The geometric progression ratio that provides a constant rate of return over the
Conatus
philosophical term originating from Latin, meaning "effort" or "striving." It re
Confabulation
In psychology, the production of fabricated, distorted, or misinterpreted memori
Confidence Interval
A range of values (interval) that act as good estimates of the unknown overall p
Confirmation Bias
The tendency to search for, interpret, favor, and recall information in a way th
Congruence Bias
Bias occurs due to people's overreliance on directly testing a given hypothesis
Conjunction Fallacy
A formal fallacy that occurs when it is assumed that specific conditions are mor
Conservatism
Generally, a political and social philosophy that promotes tradition, hierarchy,
Consistency Bias
Incorrectly remembering one's past attitudes and behavior as resembling present
Conspicuous Consumption
The phenomenon of spending of money on and the acquisition of luxury goods and s
Construal
In social psychology, a broad term for the heuristics of how individuals perceiv
Containment
A military strategy to stop the expansion of an enemy.
Context Effect
Aspect of cognition where one is influenced by environmental factors in the perc
Continued Influence Effect
Learning "facts" about an event that later turn out to be false or unfounded, ye
Continuum Fallacy
The fallacy of improperly rejecting a claim for being imprecise.
Contour Bias
In design and psychology, the tendency to prefer contoured or rounded objects, w
Contrast Effect
The enhancement or diminishment of perception, cognition or related performance
Coolidge Effect
A biological phenomenon where males exhibit renewed sexual interest whenever a n
Copernican Principle
The principle that humans, on the Earth or in the Solar system, are not privileg
Copy and Paste Programming
Copying (and modifying) existing code rather than creating custom-fit solutions
Cordon Sanitaire
From the French for a sanitary cordon, traditionally refers to forming a quarant
Counterfactual
A claim, hypothesis, or other belief that is contrary to the facts and suggests
Courtesy Bias
The tendency for respondents to understate dissatisfaction because they don't wa
Courtier's Reply
Dismissing a criticism by claiming that the critic lacks sufficient knowledge, c
Crab Mentality
Social phenomenon where people in a group try to bring down or sabotage those wh
Creative Destruction
A term for the process of an industrial cycle that revolutionizes the economic s
Critical Mass
The notion that a sufficient number of adopters of an innovation in a social sys
Critical Path
The longest unbroken chain of sequential tasks or activities where delays along
Cross-Race Effect
The tendency to more easily recognize faces of the race that one is most familia
Crowdsourcing
The process of obtaining feedback, services, ideas, or content by soliciting con
Cryptomnesia
The instance of a forgotten memory returning without it being recognized as such
Cultural Evolution
The idea that cultures and societies change over time (beliefs, knowledge, custo
Cunningham's Law
"The best way to get the right answer on the Internet is not to ask a question,
Curly's Law
Do one thing — and the rest doesn't matter.
Curse of Knowledge
A cognitive bias that occurs when an individual, communicating with other indivi
Cute Aggression
Superficially aggressive behavior caused by seeing something cute, such as a hum
Cynefin Framework
A conceptual framework used to aid decision-making. Described as a "sense-making
D
De Gustibus Non-Est Disputandum
A Latin maxim meaning "In matters of taste, there can be no disputes" — suggesti
Deadweight Loss
A loss of economic efficiency that occurs when an equilibrium state for a good o
Death March
A project whose staff, while expecting it to fail, are compelled to continue, of
Declinism
The belief that a society or institution is tending towards decline.
Decoy Effect
The phenomenon where consumers will tend to have a specific change in preference
Deductive Reasoning
Reasoning from one or more premises to reach a certain conclusion. If the premis
Deep Work
The ability to focus without distraction on a cognitively demanding task, allowi
Default Effect
The observation that if making an option a 'default' option increases the likeli
Defensible Space Theory
A residential environment whose physical characteristics — building layout and s
Defensive Attribution Hypothesis
A social psychological term from the attributional approach referring to a set o
Definitional Retreat
Changing the meaning of a word to deal with an objection raised against the orig
Deliberate Ignorance
The willful decision not to know the answer to a question, even if the answer is
Delmore Effect
The observation that people tend to paradoxically provide more articulate and ex
Denomination Effect
A form of cognitive bias relating to currency, suggesting people may be less lik
Dependency Inversion Principle
Software design principle that advocates for high-level modules to depend on abs
Depth of Processing
The notion that memory recall of stimuli is a function of the depth of mental pr
Design by Committee
The result of having many contributors to a design, but no unifying vision.
Design Pattern
The reusable form of a solution to a design problem.
Design System
A series of components that can be reused in different combinations — allowing f
Design Thinking
An umbrella term for the cognitive, strategic and practical processes by which d
Deus Ex Machina
A plot device whereby a seemingly unsolvable problem in a story is suddenly and
Development Cycle
In software, the process of dividing software development work into distinct pha
Diderot Effect
A social phenomenon related to consumer goods that comprises two related ideas:
Difference without a Distinction
Logical fallacy in which a difference between two things is asserted without any
Diffusion of Innovation
A theory that seeks to explain how, why, and at what rate new ideas and technolo
Dimensionality Reduction
In statistics, machine learning, and information theory, the process of reducing
Diminishing Marginal Utility
In economics, utility is the satisfaction or benefit derived by consuming a prod
Discursive Dilemma
A paradox in social choice theory where aggregating judgments with majority voti
Disposition Effect
An anomaly discovered in behavioral finance, where investors sell assets that ha
Distinction Bias
The tendency to view two options as more distinctive when evaluating them simult
Distributed Network
Network system where components of the program and data depend on multiple sourc
Divergent Thinking Vs. Convergent Thinking
In problem-solving, 'convergent thinking' is the type of thinking used to solve
Divide and Conquer
Recursively breaking down a problem into two or more sub-problems of the same or
Divine Fallacy
Arguing that, because something is so incredible or amazing, it must be the resu
Doherty Threshold
Conceived by Walter Doherty and Ahrvind Thadani, the Doherty threshold is an obj
Domino Effect
The cumulative effect produced when one event sets off a series of similar event
Don't Repeat Yourself (DRY)
The principle to build systems which rely on repetitive patterns and subsystems
Doorway Effect
The phenomenon that walking through a doorway leads one to forget their current
Double Counting
Counting events or occurrences more than once — seen in accounting as a mathemat
Dragon King Theory
A double metaphor for an event that is both extremely large in size or impact (a
Driveway Moment
The act of staying in one's car or hesitating to enter one's destination even af
Ducks Vs. Decorated Shed
In architecture, 'ducks' are buildings that explicitly represent their function
Dunbar's Number
The suggested cognitive limit to the number of friends one can maintain, in term
Duration Neglect
The psychological observation that people's judgments of the unpleasantness of p
Duverger's Law
A principle which states that plurality-rule elections (such as first-past-the-p
E
Ear Worm
A catchy piece of music that continually repeats through a person's mind after i
Echo Chamber
Metaphorical environment in which beliefs are amplified and reinforced inside of
Ecological Fallacy
Inferences about the nature of specific individuals are based solely upon aggreg
Economies of Scale
The reduced costs per unit that arise from increased total output of a product.
Effective Altruism
A philosophical and ethical perspective that encourages individuals to consider
Effectuation
A set of decision-making principles where entrepreneurs determine goals accordin
Effort Justification
A person's tendency to attribute a value to an outcome, which they had to put ef
Egg Corn
An idiosyncratic substitution of a word or phrase for a word or words that sound
Ego Depletion
The idea that self-control or willpower draws upon a limited pool of mental reso
Egocentric Bias
The tendency to rely too heavily on one's own perspective and/or have a higher o
Eierlegende-Wollmilchsau
Egg-laying wool milk sow.
Eigenquestions
The idea that there is a question where, if answered, likely answers subsequent
Eisenhower Method
The time management adage that what is important is seldom urgent, and what is u
elda för kråkorna
"building a fire for the crows"
Elephant in the Room
An obvious problem or risk that no one wants to discuss but which everyone is si
Emergence
A concept whereby larger (or broader) entities, patterns, and regularities arise
Emotion Contagion
The phenomenon where emotional states can be transferred to others via emotional
Emotive Conjugation
A construction from linguistics, psychology and rhetoric which demonstrates how
Empathy Gap
Cognitive bias in which people underestimate the influences of visceral drives o
Empty Fort Strategy
Using reverse psychology (and luck) to deceive the enemy into thinking that an e
Enargeia
The quality of extreme vividness, radiance or present-ness (Greek ἐνεργής; "visi
Endowment Effect
The hypothesis that people ascribe more value to things merely because they own
Ensō
In Zen, a circle that is hand-drawn in one or two uninhibited brushstrokes to ex
Entropy
A concept principally demonstrated in physics around the idea of irreversibility
Equivocation
An informal fallacy resulting from the use of a particular word/expression in mu
Error Hiding
In computer programming, the practice of 'catching' an error message before it c
Error Management Theory
A theory of perception and cognition biases referring to how humans think and ma
Escalation of Commitment
Pattern of behavior in which an individual or group facing increasingly negative
Esprit De L'escalier
French term ("staircase wit") describing the feeling one has when thinking of th
Essentialism
The view that every entity has a set of attributes that are necessary to its ide
Eternal Return
Concept in philosophy and religion that suggests that the universe and all exist
Etymological Fallacy
A reasoning that the original or historical meaning of a word or phrase is neces
Eudaimonia
A state in which one is achieving their full human potential.
Every Fool their own Tool
A phenomenon where software developers fail to use proper software development p
Exaggerated Expectation
A more extreme version of confirmation bias (interpreting information in such a
Exaptation
A shift in the function of a trait during evolution. For example, a trait can ev
Exit Strategy
A strategic means of leaving one's current situation, either after a predetermin
Expectation Effect
The bias for pre-existing expectations in observing a phenomenon to invariably i
Expected Value
The probability-weighted average of all possible values. For example, the expect
Explaining Away
A pattern of reasoning where one cause of an effect explains that effect entirel
Exponential Backoff
An algorithm that uses feedback to multiplicatively decrease the rate of some pr
Exposure Effect
A psychological phenomenon by which people tend to develop a preference for thin
Extreme Risk
Risks of very bad outcomes or "high consequence", but of low probability. They i
Extrinsic Incentives Bias
An attributional bias where people attribute relatively more to "extrinsic incen
F
Fading Affect Bias
A psychological phenomenon in which information regarding negative emotions tend
Fallacy of Accent
An ambiguity that arises when the meaning of a sentence is changed by placing an
Fallacy of Composition
Assuming that something true of part of a whole must also be true of the whole.
Fallacy of Division
The fallacy of assuming that something true of a thing must also be true of all
Fallacy of the Single Cause
Assuming that there is one, simple cause of an outcome when in reality it may be
Fallibilism
The philosophical claim that no belief can have justification which guarantees t
False Analogy
An argument by analogy in which the analogy is poorly suited.
False Attribution
An appeal to an irrelevant, unqualified, unidentified, biased or fabricated sour
False Authority
Using an expert of dubious credentials or using only one opinion to sell a produ
False Dilemma
Assuming that only two alternative statements are held to be the only possible o
False Equivalence
An informal fallacy which asserts that the truth of an argument must be found as
False Memory
A psychological phenomenon where a person recalls something that did not happen
False-Consensus Effect
An attributional type of cognitive bias whereby people tend to overestimate the
False-Uniqueness Effect
How people tend to view their qualities, traits and personal attributes as uniqu
Fan Effect
A psychological phenomenon where recognition times or error rates for a particul
Faulty Generalization
The fallacy of reaching a conclusion from weak initial premises.
Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt (FUD)
A disinformation strategy used in sales, marketing, public relations, politics a
Feedback Loop
The loop or circuit that forms when outputs of a system are routed back as input
Fermi Paradox
The apparent contradiction between the lack of evidence and high probability est
Fibonacci Sequence
Numbers characterized by the fact that every number after the first two is the s
Fighting the Last War
Using strategies and tactics that worked successfully in the past — but are no l
Figure-Ground Relationship
A type of perceptual grouping of identifying a figure from the background.
Fika
Swedish term that connotes a coffee break.
Filter Bubble
The notion that users get less exposure to conflicting viewpoints and are isolat
Fingerspitzengefühl
German term that literally translates to "finger-tip feeling." and describes a h
Finite Vs. Infinite Games
Finite games are the familiar contests of everyday life; they are played in orde
First-Mover Advantage Vs. First-Mover Disadvantage
The advantage gained by the first-moving significant occupant of a market segmen
First-Order Vs. Second-Order Effects
First order effects directly follow from a cause, while second order effects fol
First-time Every-time Bureaucracy
The experience of going through a process where one is made to feel as though it
Fitts's Law
A predictive model of human movement primarily used in human–computer interactio
Flexibility-Usability Tradeoff
The design principle that as the flexibility of a system increases, its usabilit
Florence Nightingale Effect
A trope where a caregiver develops romantic feelings, sexual feelings, or both f
Fly by Wire
In aviation, a system that replaces the conventional manual flight controls of a
Flynn Effect
The substantial and long-sustained increase in both fluid and crystallized intel
Flypaper Theory
The notion that it is desirable to draw enemies to a single area, where it is ea
Focal Point
A solution that people will tend to use in the absence of communication, because
Fog of War
The uncertainty in situational awareness experienced, most commonly used as a re
Foot-in-the-Door Technique
A tactic that aims at getting a party to agree to a large request by having them
Force Multiplier
Military term that describes a capability or technology that significantly enhan
Forcing Function
An activity that forces one to take action and produce a result.
Form Follows Function
A principle which says that the shape of a building or object should primarily r
Framing Effect
A set of concepts and theoretical perspectives on how individuals, groups, and s
Frankenstein's Monster
A term invoking the fictional character and referring to perhaps one of the many
Free-Rider Problem
The economic inefficiency situation arises that when those who benefit from reso
Freemium
A pricing strategy by which a product or service (typically a digital offering o
Freeze-Flight-Fight-Forfeit
The fundamental response options when humans (and other animals) are exposed to
Fresh Start Effect
The cognitive phenomenon where people are more likely to take action towards a g
Friction Costs
The total direct and indirect costs associated with the execution of a transacti
Friendskip
The phenomenon of mutual friends meeting based on their friendship to the origin
Functional Fixedness
A cognitive bias that limits a person to use an object only in the way it is tra
Fundamental Attribution Error
The notion that, in contrast to interpretations of their own behavior, people te
Furtive Fallacy
Outcomes are asserted to have been caused by the misconduct or wrongdoing of dec
G
G.I. Joe Fallacy
The fallacy that simple knowledge of an issue is akin to solving that issue, der
Gaia Hypothesis
A theory proposing that living organisms interact with their inorganic surroundi
Galileo Gambit
Fallacious argument that someone's unconventional or controversial views are tru
Gall's Law
Gall's Law is a rule of thumb for systems design from Gall's book Systemantics:
Galls Law
A complex system that works is invariably found to have evolved from a simple sy
Gambler's Fallacy
The mistaken belief that, if something happens more frequently than normal durin
Game Theory
The study of mathematical models of strategic interaction between rational decis
Garbage In, Garbage Out
The concept that flawed, incorrect, or nonsense input data produces flawed, inco
Gate's Law
The adage from Bill Gates that, "Most people overestimate what they can do in on
Generation Effect
A phenomenon where information is better remembered if it is generated from one'
Generational Amnesia
Phenomenon where knowledge or experiences are lost between generations due to in
Gestalt Laws of Grouping
The observation that humans naturally perceive objects as organized patterns and
Gezellig
Translated from Dutch as "coziness" — it connotes a relaxed and warm situation a
Gift of the Magi
The parable of a young husband and wife and how they deal with the challenge of
Giran
The work draws on the Wiradjuri concept of giran which describes the winds, chan
Godwin's Law
The observed Internet phenomenon where if an online discussion (regardless of to
Gökotta
Swedish term that refers to the act of waking up early in the morning to go outs
Gold Plating
Continuing to work on a task or project well past the point at which extra effor
Golden Ratio
A mathematical relationship where the ratio of two quantities equals the ratio o
Goodhart's Law
An axiom stating that once a measure becomes a target, it ceases to be a good me
Google Effect
The tendency to forget information that can be found readily online by using Int
Graceful Degradation
The ability of a system, machine, or product to maintain a limited functionality
Granularity
The condition of existing in grains or granules, referring to the extent to whic
Gray Rhino
An analogy referring to a highly probable, high impact yet neglected threat. Exa
Gresham’s Law
A monetary principle stating that "bad money drives out good". If there are two
Group Attribution Error
The tendency to believe either that the characteristics of an individual group m
Groupthink
Aa psychological phenomenon that occurs within a group of people in which the de
Growth Mindset Vs. Fixed Mindset
Fixed Mindset is the belief that abilities are innate, and failure is interprete
Gruen Effect
In shopping mall design, the moment when consumers enter a shopping mall or stor
Guerilla Warfare
A form of irregular warfare in which a small group of combatants such as paramil
Gunslinger Effect
Phenomenon in which individuals become overconfident and underestimate the risks
Gutenberg Diagram
A user behavior known as reading gravity, i.e. the western habit of reading left
H
Halcyon Days
A term used to denote a past period that is being remembered for being happy and
Haldane's Rule of the Right Size
The biological notion that every organism has an optimum size, and a change in s
Halo Effect
A type of immediate judgement discrepancy, or cognitive bias, where a person mak
Halting Problem
In computing, the challenge in determining just from code and an input, whether
Hard Code Vs. Soft Code
Embedding data directly into the source code of a system, whereas 'soft code' em
Hard-Easy Effect
A cognitive bias that manifests itself as a tendency to overestimate the probabi
Hasty Generalization
Making a rushed conclusion without considering all of the environmental factors
Hawthorne Effect
A type of reactivity in which individuals modify an aspect of their behavior in
Headwinds Tailwinds Asymmetry
The tendency for benefits and resources to be simply enjoyed and ignored (headwi
Hebbian Theory
A neuroscientific theory claiming that an increase in synaptic efficacy arises f
Hedgehogs Vs. Foxes
A parable of two differing cognitive style — hedgehogs are specialized and drill
Hedonic Treadmill
The tendency of humans to quickly return to a relatively stable level of happine
Hegemony
The political, economic, or military predominance or control of one state over o
Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle
In physics, a fundamental limit to the precision with which certain pairs of phy
Herd Immunity
A form of indirect protection from a disease or circumstance when a large propor
Herd Sense
The attentional ability for individuals in a mass-transit environment to navigat
Heterodox
Originating from a religious perspective (opposite of "Orthodox"), means not con
Heuristic
Any approach to problem solving, learning, or discovery that employs a practical
Hick's Law
Describes the time it takes for a person to make a decision as a result of the p
Hiding Hand Principle
The idea that when a person decides to take on a project, the ignorance of futur
Hierarchy
An arrangement of items (objects, names, values, categories, etc.) in which the
Hill Climbing
A mathematical optimization technique where an iterative algorithm starts with a
Hindsight Bias
Looking backwards after an event has occurred and arguing for its obvious predic
Historian's Fallacy
The assumption that decision makers of the past viewed events from the same pers
Historical Fallacy
A set of considerations is thought to hold good only because a completed process
Hive Mind
Group intelligence that emerges from the collective efforts of individuals and r
Ho'oponopono
Hawaiian practice of forgiveness.
Hofstadter's Law
The axiom that "it always takes longer than you expect, even when you take into
Holy Grail Distribution
In economics and finance, a probability distribution with a positive mean and ri
Homophily
The tendency of individuals to associate and bond with similar others, as in the
Homunculus Fallacy
An argument that accounts for a phenomenon in terms of the very phenomenon that
Horror Vacui
In visual art, the filling of the entire surface of a space or an artwork with d
Hostile Attribution Bias
The tendency to interpret others' behaviors as having hostile intent, even when
Hostile Media Effect
A perceptual theory of mass communication that refers to the tendency for indivi
Hot Hand Fallacy
The apparent phenomenon that a person who experiences a successful outcome with
Human-Centered Design
A framework of processes (not restricted to interfaces or technologies) in which
Humor Effect
The observation that humorous items are more easily remembered than non-humorous
Hurkle-Durkle
18th century Scottish term for lounging in bed long after it's time to get up.
Hygge
Danish concept that refers to a feeling of coziness, warmth, and contentment, of
Hyperbolic Discounting
The tendency for people to increasingly choose a smaller (but more immediate) re
Hyperobject
Entities that are so large, both spatially and temporally, that they exceed our
Hypersonic Effect
A term coined to describe a phenomenon reported in a controversial scientific st
Hysteresis
The dependence of the state of a system on its history. For example, a magnet ma
I
Iconic Representation
The use of pictorial images to make actions, objects, and concepts in a display
Ideal Free Distribution
In ecology, a way in which animals distribute themselves among several patches o
Ideal Theory Vs. Non-Ideal Theory
An economic theory where "ideal theory" assumes strict compliance and works out
Identifiable Victim Effect
The tendency of individuals to offer greater aid when a specific, identifiable p
If-by-Whiskey
An argument that supports both sides of an issue by using terms that are selecti
Ignoring a Common Cause
Assuming that correlations within data show that one variable causes another, an
Illicit Transference
An informal fallacy occurring when an argument assumes there is no difference be
Illusion of Asymmetric Insight
A cognitive bias whereby people perceive their knowledge of others to surpass ot
Illusion of Control
The tendency for people to overestimate their ability to control events.
Illusion of Explanatory Depth
The notion that most people feel they understand the world with far greater deta
Illusion of Transparency
The tendency for people to overestimate the degree to which their personal menta
Illusion of Truth Effect
The notion that one is more likely to identify as true statements those they hav
Illusion of Validity
Bias where a person overestimates their ability to accurately interpret and pred
Impact Bias
The tendency for people to overestimate the length or the intensity of future em
Impedance Matching
The practice, in electronics, of designing the input impedance of an electrical
Improbability Factor
Assuming that it is improbable that a known error will occur.
In Flagrante Delicto
A legal term indicating that a criminal has been caught in the act of committing
In Media Res
A narrative work which opens in the midst of an ongoing activity or plot.
Inattentional Blindness
Lack of attention that is not associated with any physical or instrumental defec
Included Middle
Theory proposing that logic has a three-part structure: asserting something, the
Incomplete Comparison
A fallacy where insufficient information is provided to make a complete comparis
Inconsistent Comparison
When different methods of comparison are used, leaving a false impression of the
Indexical Information
In semiotics, the phenomenon of a sign pointing to (or indexing) some object in
Inductive Fallacy
When a conclusion is made of premises that lightly support it.
Inductive Reasoning
A method of reasoning in which the premises are viewed as supplying some evidenc
Inemuri
The Japanese concept of taking power naps at work, on the subway, and in other p
Inflation of Conflict
The fallacy of assuming that because the experts of a field of knowledge disagre
Inflection Point
A point on a curve at which the curve changes from being concave to convex, or v
Information Asymmetry
The study of decisions in transactions where one party has more or better inform
Information Bias
A cognitive bias of seeking information when it does not affect action.
Information Cascade
When network participants pass on information they assume to be true, but cannot
Ingroup Bias
Pattern of favoring members of one's own group (ingroup) over others (outgroup).
Inner-Platform Effect
A system built within an existing platform (due to constraints, preferences, etc
Innsaei
Icelandic term for 'intuition', but can also mean 'the sea within' and more gene
Insensitivity to Sample Size
The cognitive bias that occurs when people judge the probability of obtaining a
Intentionality Fallacy
The insistence that the ultimate meaning of an expression must be consistent wit
Interface Bloat
Making an interface so wieldy that it is extremely difficult to implement.
Interface Segregation Principle
Software design principle that states that clients should not be forced to depen
Introspection Illusion
A cognitive bias in which people wrongly think they have direct insight into the
Intuitive Vs. Reflective Beliefs
Intuitive beliefs defined in the architecture of the mind, formulated in an intu
Invariance
The property of remaining unchanged regardless of changes in the conditions of m
Invented Here
The tendency towards dismissing any innovation or less-than-trivial solution ori
Inverse Gambler's Fallacy
The fallacy of concluding, on the basis of an unlikely outcome of a random proce
Inversion of Control
A design principle in which custom-written portions of a computer program receiv
Inverted Pyramid
A metaphor used by journalists and other writers to illustrate how information s
Ipse Dixit
Latin for "he said it himself" — an assertion without proof; or a dogmatic expre
Irrelevant Speech Effect
The degradation of serial recall when speech sounds are presented, even if the l
Is / Ought Problem
The tendency that many writers make claims about what ought to be (prescriptive)
Iteration
The repetition of a process in order to generate a sequence of outcomes — the ou
J
Jakob's Law
User experience design principle that states that users expect websites or appli
Johari Window
The categorization of knowledge about a topic where 'known unknowns' are risks t
Joy of Missing Out (JOMO)
Contrast with the Fear of Missing Out (FOMO), JOMO is the experience of relief,
Joy's Law
An aphorism that "no matter who you are, most of the smartest people work for so
Jugaad
A non-conventional solution or hack to a problem — often both frugal in nature a
Jump the Shark
The moment when something that was once popular no longer warrants the attention
Jury Rigging
Describing makeshift repairs made with only the tools and materials at hand.
Just-World Hypothesis
The cognitive bias that a person's actions are inherently inclined to bring mora
K
Kabuki
A classical Japanese dance-drama known for the stylization of its drama and for
Kaizen
Japanese term that refers to the practice of continuous improvement and incremen
Kalsarikännit
A Finnish expression for "getting drunk in one's underpants at home, usually alo
Kanban
A method to manage and improve work across systems, where work tasks are typical
Kanter's Law
"In the middle, everything looks like a failure."
Kappa Effect
A temporal perceptual illusion where in perceiving a sequence of consecutive sti
Kardashev scale
Theoretical framework for measuring a civilization's technological advancement b
Keeper of the Fabric
Person who tells the story and/or connects the generations.
Kettle Logic
Using multiple, jointly-inconsistent arguments to defend a position.
Keystone Species
A species that has a disproportionately large effect on its environment relative
Kinetic Depth Effect
The phenomenon whereby the three-dimensional structural form of an object can be
KISS
A project management adage for 'Keep It Simple Stupid.'
Kludge
A workaround or quick-and-dirty solution that is clumsy, inelegant, inefficient,
Knoll’s Law of Media Accuracy
"Everything you read in the newspapers is absolutely true except for that rare s
Knolling
The process of arranging different objects so that they are at 90-degree angles
Koyaanisqatsi
From the Hopi language for, "unbalanced life", a term that has become popularly
Kuleshov Effect
A film editing (montage) effect by which viewers derive more meaning from the in
Kurtosis Risk
In statistics and decision theory, the risk that results when a statistical mode
L
Lagos
Swedish philosophy of moderation.
Lasagna Code
Computer programming whose structure consists of too many layers of stacking.
Lateral Thinking
Solving problems through an indirect and creative approach, i.e. using reasoning
Lava Flow
Retaining undesirable code because removing it is too expensive or has unpredict
Law of Good Continuation
The design aesthetic phenomenon where figures with edges that are smooth are mor
Law of Jante
Scandinavian social code that emphasizes humility, conformity, and egalitarianis
Law of Large Numbers
In probability theory, a theorem that describes the result of performing the sam
Law of Prägnanz
A fundamental principle of gestalt which says that people will perceive and inte
Law of Two-thirds
(price, quality, speed)
Le Chatelier's Principle
The principle that when a system in equilibrium is disturbed, the system will ad
Less-is-Better Effect
A type of preference reversal that occurs when the lesser or smaller alternative
Leveling and Sharpening
In memory, sharpening is usually the way people remember small details in the re
Library of Babel
A story of an infinite biblio-nightmare that stockpiled every possible iteration
Lilliputians
Adjective connoting "small in size" or "trivial" — often used to refer to narrow
Liminality
The quality of ambiguity that occurs in the middle of a rite of passage, where o
Lingua Franca
A language or dialect systematically used to make communication possible between
Liskov Substitution Principle
Software design principle that states that objects of a superclass should be abl
Loaded Label
A term's connotations are relied on to sway the argument towards a particular co
Local Vs. Global Optimum
Local optimum is a solution that is best for a local area, where a global optimu
Long Game
The practice of considering the future implications of current choices in the co
Long Now Thinking
A notion of thinking which provides a counterpoint to what it views as today's "
Long-Tail Distribution
In statistics, a model which describes a distribution of occurrences where a lar
Loss Aversion
The tendency to strongly prefer avoiding losses, as opposed to acquiring gains.
Loss-Leader
A pricing strategy where a product is sold at a price below its market cost to s
Lucas Critique
The Lucas critique, named for Robert Lucas's work on macroeconomic policymaking,
Luck Surface Area
The phenomenon where when one engages in something they're excited about, they w
Lucubration
Studying or working through the night, or the work produced from such an effort.
Ludic Fallacy
The belief that the outcomes of non-regulated random occurrences can be encapsul
Lump of Labor Fallacy
Mistaken belief that there is a fixed amount of work to be done in an economy, a
M
MacGuffin
A plot device in the form of some goal, desired object, or another motivator tha
Madeleine Moment
The instance one is bombarded by a flood of memories and experiences made consci
Magic Strings
Implementing presumably unlikely input scenarios, such as comparisons with very
Magical Thinking
A term used in anthropology and psychology, denoting the causal relationships be
Major Vs. Minor Factors
Major factors explain major portions of the results, where minor factors explain
Majority Illusion
The phenomenon where individuals systematically overestimate the prevalence of t
Makers Vs. Manager's Schedule
Two divergent scheduling ideologies — the maker's schedule is one that allows fo
Maladaptation
A trait that is more harmful than helpful — in contrast with an adaptation, whic
Management by Objectives
Management by numbers with a focus on quantitative management criteria.
Mandela Effect
A type of false memory effect when shared by multiple people — named for the not
Market Pull Technology Policy
The term for when the government sets future standards beyond what the current m
Martha Mitchell Effect
The process by which a mental health professional labels the patient's accurate
Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs
Maslow used the terms ‘physiological', ‘safety', ‘belongingness' and ‘love', ‘es
Matilda Effect
A bias against acknowledging the achievements of those women scientists whose wo
Matutolypea
A state of extreme funk/irritability after waking up — i.e. getting up on the wr
McCollough Effect
A phenomenon of human visual perception in which colorless gratings appear color
McGurk Effect
Perceptual phenomenon that demonstrates an interaction between hearing and visio
McNamara Fallacy
The fallacy of making decisions based solely on \*observable\* metrics, while ig
Medium is the Message
The form of a medium embeds itself in any message it would transmit or convey, c
Memory Inhibition
The ability not to remember irrelevant information. Scientifically speaking, mem
Mens Rea
The mental element of a person's intention to commit a crime; or knowledge that
Mental Accounting
The process whereby people code, categorize and evaluate economic personal outco
Mental Model
An explanation of a thought process, typically in a more abstract form, about ho
Mere-Exposure Effect
The tendency to express undue liking for things merely because of familiarity wi
Metcalfe's Law
A now standard law of network theory that states that the value of any given net
Micromanagement
A style of management characterized by excessive observation, supervision, or ot
Miller's Law
The observation that the number of objects an average person can hold in working
Mind Projection Fallacy
An informal fallacy where someone thinks that the way they see the world reflect
Mind-Body Problem
A philosophical problem concerning the relationship between thought and consciou
Minimum Viable Product
A product that has been targeted to be built with just enough features to gather
Misattribution of Memory
The cognitive phenomenon of remembering information correctly but being wrong ab
Misinformation Effect
Recall of specific memories are less accurate because of post-event information
Misleading Vividness
Describing an occurrence in vivid detail, even if it is an exceptional occurrenc
Mismatch Conditions
Problems that are caused by organisms being imperfectly or inadequately adapted
Missing Letter Effect
The missing letter effect refers to the finding that, when people are asked to c
Misy Fa Lany
Malagasy expression, literally “it exists but it’s empty,” which is colloquially
Mnemonic Device
A learning technique that aids information retention and retrieval in memory by
Möbius strip
A surface with only one side and only one boundary (as a ring of paper that has
Modality Effect
How learner performance depends on the presentation mode of studied items.
Modifiable Areal Unit Problem (MAUP)
A source of statistical bias where point-based measures of spatial phenomena are
Modularity
The degree to which a system's components may be separated and recombined, often
Modus Operandi
Someone's habits of working, particularly in the context of business or criminal
Money Illusion
The tendency of people to think of currency in nominal, rather than real, terms.
Monopsony
A market structure in which a single buyer substantially controls the market as
Monte Carlo Simulation
Algorithmic approach for building simulations and predictive models where the in
Mood Congruent Memory Bias
The improved recall of information congruent with one's current mood.
Moonshot
An ambitious, exploratory and ground-breaking project undertaken without any exp
Moore's Law
The observation that the number of transistors in a dense integrated circuit dou
Moral Credential Effect
Confidence in one's self-image tends to make one less worried about the conseque
Moral Hazard
The phenomenon of taking more risks because someone or something else bears the
Moral Luck
Circumstances whereby a moral agent is assigned moral blame or praise for an act
Moravec's Paradox
The discovery by artificial intelligence and robotics researchers that, contrary
Mosaic Effect
Separate pieces of information, that by themselves have limited usability, becom
Most Advanced Yet Acceptable (MAYA)
An industrial design principle which seeks to give users the most advanced desig
Most Respectful Interpretation
An attitude of assuming positive intent, as opposed to looking for alternate or
Motte-and-Bailey Fallacy
The fallacy where an arguer conflates two similar positions — one modest and eas
Moving the Goalposts
An argument in which evidence presented in response to a specific claim is dismi
Mozart Effect
The notion that listening to Mozart (and similar classical music) makes one smar
Multiple Comparisons Problem
A phenomenon where an apparently statistically significant observation may have
Munchausen Syndrome
A factitious disorder wherein those affected feign disease, illness, or psycholo
Murphy's Law
The adage that, "Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong."
Mushroom Management
A management concept where workers are not given insight to the processes, prior
Mutatis Mutandis
Acknowledging that a comparison being made requires certain alterations that don
Mutually Assured Destruction
An extension based on the theory of deterrence, which holds that the threat of u
N
Naïve Cynicism
When people naïvely expect more egocentric bias in others than actually is the c
Naïve Realism
The human tendency to believe that we see the world around us objectively, and t
Name-Letter Effect
The tendency of people to prefer the letters in their name over other letters in
Narcissistic Trespass
Term used to describe the violation of personal boundaries and invasion of priva
Nash Equilibrium
A proposed solution of a non-cooperative game involving two or more players in w
Natural Selection
The differential survival and reproduction of individuals due to differences in
Nature Vs. Nurture
A debate about human behavior as determined by a person's genes (nature), or by
Negative Capability
Term coined by John Keats to describe the ability to embrace ambiguity and uncer
Negativity Bias
The notion that, even when of equal intensity, things of a more negative nature
Neglect of Probability
The tendency to disregard probability when making a decision under uncertainty.
Neophilia
A personality type characterized by a strong affinity for novelty.
Network Effect
The effect of the value of a product or service where it is dependent on the num
Newton's Flaming Laser Sword
An anecdote on the conflicting positions of scientists and philosophers on epist
Next-in-Line Effect
The phenomena of people being unable to recall information concerning events imm
Nietzschean Affirmation
A concept in the philosophy of Friedrich Nietzsche which argues for an affirmati
Niksen
Dutch term for "to do nothing", but is more specifically "doing something withou
Ninety-Ninety Rule
The adage, often in computer programming, that the first 90 percent of the code
Nirvana Fallacy
Solutions to problems are rejected because they are not perfect solutions to tha
No True Scotsman
The fallacy of attempting to make a generalization true by changing the generali
Noosphere
A term for the "sphere of thought encircling the earth that has emerged through
Normal Distribution
The bell-shaped curve of a very common distribution of probabilities (hence it b
Normalcy Bias
A belief people hold when facing a disaster which causes them to underestimate b
North Star
A target that exhibits qualities of fixedness, observability, simplicity, and du
Not Invented Here
The tendency for organizations towards reinventing the wheel rather than adoptin
Novelty Effect
The tendency for performance to initially improve when new technology is institu
Nuclear Option
An extreme act or action of last resort that while addressing a particular probl
Nudge
A notion that positive reinforcement and indirect suggestions as ways to steer o
O
Obliteration by Incorporation
The phenomenon that occurs when at some stage of development, certain ideas beco
Observational Error
The difference between a measured value of a quantity and its true value.
Occam's Razor
A problem-solving principle which says that all else being equal, the simplest s
Off-By-One Error
Programming mistake that occurs when a programmer incorrectly references or iter
Omission Bias
The tendency to judge harmful actions as worse, or less moral than equally harmf
Omotenashi
Japanese concept of hospitality that brings ones whole self to the satisfaction
Omotenashi
Japanese term used to describe a style of hospitality that emphasizes anticipati
Onus Probandi
The burden of proof is on the person who makes the claim, not on the person who
OODA Loop
The decision cycle of Observe, Orient, Decide, and Act.
Open-Closed Principle
Software design principle that states that software entities should be open for
Operant Conditioning
A learning process through which the strength of a behavior is modified by reinf
Opportunity Cost
The value of the best alternative forgone where, given limited resources, a choi
Optimal Stopping Problem
In mathematics, a situation concerned with the problem of choosing a time to tak
Optimism Bias
Causes a person to believe that they are at a lesser risk of experiencing a nega
Order of Magnitude
An approximate measure of the number of digits that a number has in the commonly
Organizational Debt
The interest companies pay when their structure, policies, and culture stay fixe
Orientation Sensitivity
A phenomenon of visual processing in which certain line orientations are more qu
Orthogonality
The separation of specific features of a system.
Ostrich Effect
In behavioral finance, the attempt made by investors to avoid negative financial
Outcome Bias
An error made in evaluating the quality of a decision when the outcome of that d
Outgroup Homogeneity
The tendency for the perception of out-group members as more similar to one anot
Outlier
An observation point that is distant from other observation, due perhaps to vari
Outside Context Problem
A problem without precedent that does not fit within existing problem sets or mo
Overconfidence Effect
A person's subjective confidence in their judgements are greater than the object
Overengineering
Spending resources making a project more robust and complex than is needed.
Overjustification Effect
When an expected external incentive such as money or prizes decreases a person's
Overwhelming Exception
An informal fallacy of generalization, where a generalization is accurate, but c
P
Pace Layering
Understanding the relationship between components of complex systems where inter
Pandora's Box
An artifact in Greek mythology where an object that is originally seen as a gift
Panopticon
An experimental laboratory in which behavior could always be observed, and there
Parachute Paradigm
Situation where a common belief or practice is not properly scrutinized or teste
Paradigm Shift
A fundamental change in the basic concepts and experimental practices of a scien
Paradox
A statement that, despite apparently valid reasoning from true premises, leads t
Paradox of Choice
The observation that too many choices can be anxiety-inducing, and that by elimi
Pareidolia
A psychological phenomenon in which the mind responds to a stimulus, usually an
Pareto Efficiency
A state of allocation of resources in which it is impossible to make any one ind
Parkinson's Law
The axiom that work expands so as to fill the time available for its completion.
Parti Pris
Often in architecture, the basic form, diagram, or statement of a design decisio
Path Dependence
How the set of decisions one faces for any given circumstance is limited by the
Pendulum Swing
A theory suggesting that trends in culture, politics, etc., tend to swing back a
Performance Vs. Preference
The phenomenon where preferences are not always aligned by more efficient perfor
Perpetual Expected Place Effect
The tendency to show places as a wider audience might expect to see them, skewin
Perruchet Effect
A psychological phenomenon in which a dissociation is shown between conscious ex
Pessimism Bias
Causes a person to believe that they are at a greater risk of experiencing a neg
Physics Envy
Term used to describe the desire to apply the principles and methods of physics
Picture Superiority Effect
The phenomenon in which pictures and images are more likely to be remembered tha
Pizza Effect
The phenomenon of elements culture being transformed or more fully embraced else
Placebo Effect
The phenomenon where a patient is given a decoy intervention (sugar pill, fake s
Planck's Principle
The view that scientific change does not occur because individual scientists cha
Planned Obsolescence
A policy of planning or designing a product with an artificially limited useful
Planning Fallacy
A phenomenon in which predictions about how much time will be needed to complete
Plato's Cave
An analogy from the Greek Philosopher Plato in describing reality as a fire that
Poison Pill
In business, a type of defensive tactic used by a corporation's board of directo
Poisoning the Well
Presenting adverse information about a target person with the intention of discr
Poka-Yoke
A Japanese term to mean a mechanism in a process that helps an equipment operato
Polythetic Entitation
The argument that in biological classification, no single entity or characterist
Pomodoro Technique
Time management technique that uses a timer to break work down to regular interv
Population Thinking
An appeal towards a framework of thinking in terms of populations and variation
Porter's Five Forces Analysis
Framework for analyzing business competition, consisting of 'horizontal' competi
Positive Feedback
A process that occurs in a feedback loop in which the effects of a small disturb
Positivity Effect
The trend of favoring positive over negative stimuli in cognitive processing, su
Possibility Space
The range of all possible outcomes in a given scenario, which helps to illuminat
Post Hoc Ergo Propter Hoc
X happened, then Y happened; therefore, X caused Y — an example of a time sequen
Potemkin Village
A construction built solely to deceive others into believing that a situation is
Potlatch
A feast made famous as an anthropological example of gift-giving that demonstrat
Power Law
A functional relationship between two quantities, where a relative change in one
Pratfall Effect
The tendency for attractiveness to increase or decrease after an individual make
Pre-Mortem
A managerial strategy in which a project team imagines that a project or organiz
Prediction Error Minimization
The cognitive notion that our brains are fundamentally trying to minimize errors
Prejudice
An affective feeling towards a person or group member based solely on that perso
Premature Optimization
The notion from computer science that one should not spend an inordinate amount
Present Value
The value of an expected future reward or income as determined on the date of va
Preserving Optionality
A strategy of keeping one's options open and available as long as possible (resi
Prevalence Effect
The phenomenon that one is more likely to miss (or fail to detect) a target with
Price Elasticity
A measure of the responsiveness an economic variable is to a change in another v
Priming
A technique whereby exposure to one stimulus influences a response to a subseque
Primrose Path
An expression for a way of life that is thought to be easy and pleasant, but in
Principle of Least Astonishment
The notion that a component of a system should behave in a way that most users w
Principle of Least Effort
People and systems naturally choose the path of least resistance and cease once
Priority Inversion
A scenario in scheduling in which a high priority task is indirectly preempted b
Prisoner's Dilemma
A standard example of a game analyzed in game theory that shows why two complete
Pro-Innovation Bias
The belief that an innovation should be adopted by whole society without the nee
Processing Difficulty Effect
The observation that information that takes longer to read and is thought about
Programming by Permutation
Trying to approach a solution by successively modifying the code and seeing what
Progressive Disclosure
An interaction design technique often used in human computer interaction and jou
Prominence-Interpretation Theory
The usability observation that people determine a site's credibility by judging
Proof by Assertion
A fallacy where a proposition is repeatedly restated regardless of contradiction
Proportionality Bias
The tendency to believe that big events must necessarily have big causes — a bel
Prosecutor's Fallacy
A fallacy of statistical reasoning, typically used by the prosecution to argue f
Prospect Theory
A theory in cognitive psychology that describes the way people choose between pr
Prospect-Refuge
A theory that suggests that spaces we find most acceptable to be in present us w
Prototyping
An early sample, model, or release of a product built to test a concept or proce
Proving Too Much
Using a form of argument that, if it were valid, could be used to reach an addit
Proximate Vs. Root Cause
A proximate cause is an event which is closest to, or immediately responsible fo
Proxy
A variable that is not in itself directly relevant, but that serves in place of
Proxy War
A conflict between two parties (typically used for nations) where neither party
Pseudocertainty Effect
The tendency for people to perceive an outcome as certain while it is actually u
Psychological Calories
Describes the mental effort and energy required to process and cope with the var
Psychologist's Fallacy
An observer assumes the objectivity of their own perspective when analyzing a be
Publication Bias
A bias in academic research that favors the publishing of novel or interesting r
Punctuated Equilibrium
A theory in evolutionary biology that once species appear in the fossil record t
Pygmalion Effect
The phenomenon whereby higher expectations lead to an increase in performance.
Pyramid Scheme
A business model that recruits members via a promise of payments or services for
Pyrrhic Victory
A victory that inflicts such a devastating toll on the victor that it is tantamo
Pyt
Danish term for a cultural concept of cultivating a healthy mindset towards stre
Q
Qualia
The individual instances of subjective, conscious experience, such as how one pe
Questionable Cause
The confusion of association with causation, either by inappropriately deducing
Quid Pro Quo
A Latin phrase used in English to mean an exchange of goods or services, in whic
Quines
A non-empty computer program which takes no input and produces a copy of its own
Quipu
Recording devices fashioned from strings and knots, historically used by a numbe
R
R0
A mathematical term that indicates how contagious an infectious disease is, also
Race Hazard
Failing to see the consequences of events that can sometimes interfere with each
Ranked-Choice Voting
A type of preferential voting method used in single-seat elections with more tha
Rashomon Effect
When the same event is given contradictory interpretations by different individu
Reactive Devaluation
A cognitive bias that occurs when a proposal is devalued if it appears to origin
Reality Tunnel
A theory that, with a subconscious set of mental filters formed from beliefs and
Recall Bias
A systematic error caused by differences in the accuracy or completeness of the
Recency Bias
The phenomenon where we recall things presented to us most recently most easily.
Recency Illusion
The belief or impression that something (typically a word or language usage), is
Reciprocal Altruism
A behavior whereby an organism acts in a manner that temporarily reduces its fit
Recognition Over Recall
The observation that showing users things they can recognize improves usability
Recursion
The instance of a thing being defined in terms of itself or of its type.
Red Pill Vs. Blue Pill
The red pill and its opposite, the blue pill, are a popular cultural meme, a met
Red Queen Hypothesis
Evolutionary theory that suggests organisms must constantly evolve and adapt sim
Referential Fallacy
Assuming all words refer to existing things and that the meaning of words reside
Region-beta Paradox
Phenomenon where people may simultaneously hold stereotypical beliefs about a gr
Regression Fallacy
Ascribes cause where none exists — the flaw is failing to account for natural fl
Regression Toward the Mean
The statistical tendency that for any event where luck or probability plays a ro
Regressive Bias
The tendency to remember high values and high likelihoods/probabilities/frequenc
Reification
When an abstraction, idea, or belief is treated as if it were a concrete, real e
Reinventing the Wheel
Failing to adopt an existing solution and instead adopting or building a custom
Relative Deprivation
The experience of being deprived resources to which one is accustomed — can be n
Reminiscence Bump
The tendency for older adults to have increased recollection for events that occ
Representativeness Heuristic
Used when making judgments about the probability of an event under uncertainty,
Res Ipsa Loquitur
In the common law of torts, res ipsa loquitur (Latin for "the thing speaks for i
Reserve Ratio
A bank regulation employed by most, but not all, of the world's central banks, t
Resource Curse
The phenomenon of the seeming paradox that countries and regions with an abundan
Respondeat Superior
A doctrine that a party is responsible for acts of their agents.
Response Bias
A wide range of cognitive biases that influence the responses of participants aw
Restraint Bias
The tendency for people to overestimate their ability to control impulsive behav
Restraints Vs. Constraints
Restraint is where something holds itself back from doing something, where const
Retrospective Determinism
The argument that because an event has occurred under some circumstance, the cir
Revealed Preference
A method of analyzing choices made by individuals, mostly used for comparing the
Revenge Effect
When technology has the opposite effect of the purpose for which it was created.
Reverse Causation
Reversing cause and effect — claiming the consequence of the phenomenon as its r
Reverse Psychology
A technique involving the assertion of a belief or behavior that is opposite to
Reversible Vs. Irreversible Decisions
The two types of decision consequences, where reversible decisions can be unwoun
Rhyme-As-Reason Effect
A cognitive bias whereupon a saying or aphorism is judged as more accurate or tr
Right to Forget
The notion that individuals have a right to determine the development of their l
Ringelmann Effect
The tendency for individual members of a group to become increasingly less produ
Risk Compensation
A theory which suggests that people typically adjust their behavior in response
Rock Theory
Observation that contrasts disruptive boulders (large rocks) that must be dealt
Rosetta Stone
A key to deciphering an unknown text or idea.
Rosy Retrospection
The psychological phenomenon of people sometimes judging the past disproportiona
Rubber Ducking
The practice in computer programming to force oneself to read their code, line-b
Rule of Thirds
A rule of thumb which applies to the process of composing well-design visual ima
Rumpelstiltskin Effect
A classic fairytale of desiring to make-do with less, and the sacrifices we are
Rumsfeld's Rule
The notion that "you go to war with the army you have, not the army that you wis
Russell's Teapot
An analogy to illustrate that the philosophic burden of proof lies upon a person
S
S Curve
A mathematical function having a characteristic "S"-shaped (or "sigmoid") curve
Salience
The property of being noticeable or important — i.e. the perceptual quality by w
Salience Bias
The tendency to use highly visible or shocking traits to make a judgment or dete
Sambaza
In Western Kenya, it means "to spread", and refers to marketing slogans for mobi
Sampling Bias
A bias in which a sample is collected in such a way that some members of the int
Satisfice
Satisfy' and 'suffice' — decision-making strategy where one searches through ava
Saudade
Portuguese term that describes a deep emotional state of nostalgia or melancholi
Savanna Preference
Preference for people to prefer savanna-like environments that are expansive, sh
Saying is Believing Effect
Communicating a socially tuned message to an audience can lead to a bias of iden
Scaling Fallacy
The phenomena where people wrongly assume that something that works at one size
Scarcity
The limited availability of a commodity, which may be in demand in the market.
Scenario Planning
A structured way for organizations to think about the future, typically by devel
Schrödinger's Cat
A thought experiment illustrating a conundrum in quantum mechanics as applied to
Scope Creep
The tendency for the continuous growth, development, and addition of new feature
Seagull Management
Management in which managers only interact with employees when a problem arises
Second-Order Thinking
The process of estimating and considering the implications of impacts of a first
Selection Bias
The selection of individuals, groups or data for analysis in such a way that pro
Selective Perception
The tendency not to notice and more quickly forget stimuli that cause emotional
Self-Enhancement Effect
A cognitive bias whereby a person overestimates their own qualities and abilitie
Self-Fulfilling Prophecy
A prediction that directly or indirectly causes itself to become true, by the ve
Self-Handicapping
A cognitive strategy by which people avoid effort in the hopes of keeping potent
Self-Relevance Effect
A tendency for people to encode information differently depending on the level o
Self-sealing
Term used to describe conspiracy theories that are immune from falsifiability or
Self-Serving Bias
A narrative or perceptual framework that is distorted by the need to maintain (o
Self-Similarity
In mathematics, the characteristic of something being exactly or approximately s
Selfish Herd Theory
The theory that individuals within a population attempt to reduce their predatio
Semmelweis Reflex
A metaphor for the reflex-like tendency to reject new evidence or new knowledge
Sensitivity Analysis
An analysis of how a system changes by some adjustment to inputs; one changes th
Separation of Concerns
Software engineering principle that emphasizes the importance of dividing a syst
Serial Position Effect
The observation that we recall the first and last items in a series best, and th
Shaggy Dog Story
A long-winded anecdote characterized by extensive narration, of typically irrele
Shared Information Bias
The tendency for group members to spend more time and energy discussing informat
Sheepskin Effect
The hypothesis that the awarding of an educational degree would yield a higher i
Shibboleth
Any custom or tradition, particularly a speech pattern, that distinguishes one g
Shikantaza
Literally ‘single-minded sitting.’ The term doesn’t refer to meditation or to a
Shinrin-yoku
This is the healing way of Shinrin-yoku Forest Therapy, the medicine of simply b
Ship of Theseus
A thought experiment that raises the question of whether a ship—standing for an
Shirky Principle
The notion that institutions will try to preserve the problem to which they are
Short-Termism
A skewed focus on short-term results at the expense of long-term interests.
Shotgun Surgery
Adding multiple features or modifications to a system in a single change.
Signal-to-Noise Ratio
A measure used in science and engineering that compares the level of a desired s
Signaling Theory
A body of theoretical work examining communication between individuals, where th
Silver Bullet
Assuming that a preferred technical solution can solve a larger process or probl
Simon Effect
The finding that reaction times are usually faster, and reactions are usually mo
Simulated Annealing
A probabilistic technique for approximating the global optimum of a given functi
Sine Qua Non
An indispensable and essential action, condition, or ingredient.
Single Responsibility Principle
Software design principle that states that a class or module should have only on
Sisu
A Finnish concept described as stoic determination, tenacity of purpose, grit, b
Sisyphean Task
Refers to a task that is both laborious (perhaps endless) and ultimately futile.
Sleeper Effect
A psychological observation that a persuasive message can attain \*more\* credib
Slippery Slope
Asserting that if we allow A to happen, then Z will eventually happen too, there
Slothful Induction
The fallacy of denying the logical conclusion of an inductive argument, dismissi
Smoke and Mirrors
Demonstrating features or characteristics in a disingenuously glossy or finished
Snake Oil
A term used to describe deceptive marketing, or a placebo medication that is adv
Snap-to-Grid
Typically applied in digital graphic design, snap-to-grid is a function used to
Sociability Bias of Language
The phenomenon in most languages of disproportionately higher representation of
Social Comparison Bias
Having feelings of dislike and competitiveness with someone that is seen physica
Social Desirability Bias
A type of response bias that demonstrates the tendency of survey respondents to
Social Proof
A psychological phenomenon where people copy the actions of others in an attempt
Software is Eating the World
The notion that software applications and more broadly, technological society, a
Solutionism
The belief that all difficulties have benign solutions, often of a technocratic
Sophie's Choice
A forced decision with no positive outcome.
Spacing Effect
The observation that learning is greater when studying is spread out over time,
Spandrel
Architectural term that describes the triangular space between the top of an arc
Special Pleading
A proponent of a position attempts to cite something as an exemption to a genera
Speculation Vs. Investing
Speculating typically refers to high-risk trades that are almost akin to gamblin
Sphere of Influence
A spatial region or conceptual division where a state or organization has a leve
Spontaneous Order
The spontaneous emergence of order out of seeming chaos.
Spotlight Effect
The phenomenon in which people tend to believe they are being noticed or are the
Stakeholder Theory
A theory of organizational management and ethics that addresses morals and value
Status Quo Bias
An emotional bias for a preference for the current state of affairs.
Stigler's Law of Eponymy
The notion that no scientific discovery is named after its original discoverer.
Stochastic
Derived from the Greek word "stochastikos," meaning "pertaining to conjecture" o
Stochastic Volatility Models
Models where the variance of a stochastic process is itself randomly distributed
Stock–Sanford Corollary
"If you wait until the last minute, it only takes a minute to do."
Stockholm Syndrome
A condition that causes hostages to develop a psychological alliance with their
Stone Soup
A folk story in which hungry strangers convince the people of a town to each sha
Storytelling
The social and cultural activity of sharing stories, sometimes with improvisatio
Stovepipes Vs. Silos
Organizational structures where stovepipes and silos are isolated or semi-isolat
Strange Loop
A cyclic structure that goes through several levels in a hierarchical system, an
Strategy Tax
The "tax" incurred as a result of products developed inside a company that have
Strategy Vs. Tactics
Strategy is a set of choices used to achieve an overall objective whereas tactic
Straw Man
Giving the impression of refuting an opponent's argument, while actually refutin
Streetlight Effect
A type of observational bias that occurs when people only search for something w
Stroop Effect
A demonstration of interference in the reaction time of a task, particularly the
Sturgeon's Law
An adage commonly cited as "ninety percent of everything is crap".
Sua Sponte
Often in law, describes an act of authority taken without formal prompting from
Subadditivity Effect
The tendency to judge probability of the whole to be less than the probabilities
Subjective Validation
A cognitive bias by which a person will consider a statement or another piece of
Subway Uncertainty vs Coconut Uncertainty
Two related types of risks: Subway Uncertainty refers to well-defined, calculabl
Suffix Effect
A cognitive bias where when trying to hear a list of items to be remembered, whi
Sunk Cost Fallacy
The economic fallacy where a cost that has already been incurred and cannot be r
Supernormal Stimuli
An exaggerated version of a stimulus to which there is an existing response tend
Supply and Demand
A classic economic model of price determination in a market. In a competitive ma
Suppressed Correlative
The fallacy of redefining a correlative so that one alternative is made impossib
Surrogate Activity
A behavior or pursuit that is engaged in for its own sake, but is ultimately a s
Surrogation
Phenomenon in which the measure of an item of interest evolves to replace the it
Swan Song
A metaphorical phrase for a final gesture, effort, or performance given just bef
Sword of Damocles
A parable from the Greek Classical era of man who is offered to sit in on the Ki
Symbol Grounding Problem
The problem of how words (symbols) get their meanings, and hence to the problem
Synecdoche
A figure of speech in which a term for a part of something refers to the whole o
System Justification
A theory within social psychology where people have underlying needs, which vary
Systematic Bias
The inherent tendency of a process to support particular outcomes — generally re
Systems Thinking
Framework for looking holistically at a set of components that are related, inte
T
Tabula Rasa
The idea that individuals are born without built-in mental content and that ther
Tachypsychia
A neurological condition that alters the perception of time, usually induced by
Tail Distributions
Set of probability distributions that display particular characteristics, owing
Tamagotchi Effect
The development of emotional attachment with machines, robots or software agents
Technical Debt
In computer programming, the extra development work (debt) that arises when code
Technological Singularity
The idea that the invention of artificial intelligence will trigger runaway tech
Technology Adoption Lifecycle
The adoption or acceptance of a new product or innovation, according to the demo
Telescoping Effect
The time displacement of an event where people perceive recent events as being m
Tester-Driven Development
Software projects in which new requirements are specified in bug reports.
Testing Effect
Long-term memory is improved when some of the learning period is devoted to retr
Tetris Effect
When people devote so much time and attention to an activity that it begins to p
Texas Sharpshooter Fallacy
An informal fallacy where differences in data are ignored, but similarities are
The principle of Last Responsible Moment
Decision-making principle that suggests that the best time to make a decision is
Thinking Fast Vs. Thinking Slow
The notion that there is a dichotomy between two "modes" of thought: ‘System 1'
Third Rail
A metaphor for an issue that is controversial to the point of being "untouchable
Third Story
The narrative or testimony of an impartial observer or a mediator would tell — a
Third-Person Effect
The notion that people perceive that mass media messages have a greater effect o
Thought Experiment
Considers some hypothesis, theory, or principle for the purpose of thinking thro
Thought-Terminating Cliché
A commonly used phrase, sometimes passing as folk wisdom, used to quell cognitiv
Threat Detection
In computer security, a threat is a possible danger that might exploit a vulnera
Thucydides Trap
The theory that when an established power is threatened by an emerging power, th
Tiffany Problem
Cognitive bias where people assume that expensive and high-quality items are alw
Tikkun Olam
A concept in Judaism, typically interpreted as an aspiration to behave and act c
Time-Saving Bias
People's tendency to misestimate the time that could be saved (or lost) when inc
Tip of the Tongue Phenomenon
The phenomenon of not being able to retrieve a word from memory, combined with t
Torschlusspanik
German compound word translated as "gate-close-panic", describing a fear that ti
Trade-Off
A situation that involves losing one quality or aspect of something in return fo
Tragedy of the Commons
A situation within a shared-resource system where individual users acting indep
Trait Ascription Bias
The tendency for people to view themselves as relatively variable in terms of pe
Trapped Key Interlocking
Method of using locks and keys for sequential control of equipment and machinery
TRIZ
A problem-solving methodology that emphasizes the use of inventive principles an
Trojan Horse
A trick or strategy that causes a target to invite a foe into a securely protect
Trolley Problem
A moral thought experiment in ethics where one is asked to make a decision upon
Tsukumogami
Japanese folklore term that refers to household objects that have acquired a spi
Turboencabulator
Fictional machine or device that has been used as a humorous technical term to p
Turing Test
A test of a machine's ability to exhibit intelligent behavior equivalent to, or
Turtles All the Way Down
An expression of the problem of needing something to explain something to explai
Two-Factor Theory of Emotion
The notion that emotion is based on two factors: physiological arousal and cogni
Two-Front War
A war in which fighting takes place on two geographically separate fronts.
Type I and Type II Errors
In statistical hypothesis testing, a Type I Error is the rejection of a true nul
Typecasting
The tendency to 'lock' individuals into narrowly defined, safe, predictable role
Tyranny of Small Decisions
A situation where a series of small, individually rational decisions can negativ
U
Ubuntu
Putting the community above the individual.
Ultimate Attribution Error
A group-level attribution error where one explains an outgroups' negative behavi
Ulysses Pact
A freely made decision that is designed and intended to bind oneself in the futu
Umwelt
The term is usually translated as "self-centered word" and represents an organis
Uncanny Valley
The increasing unease one experience as an entity approaches realistic humanoid
Unintended Consequences
The things that happen as a result of some action, which were not necessarily an
Unit Bias
Systematic patterns of deviation from norm or rationality in judgment. Some are
Ur
Often used a prefix that denotes the first or earliest of something, and in mode
Urawaza
Japanese term that refers to a clever or unconventional solution or hack that so
V
Vaporware
A product, typically computer hardware or software, that is announced to the gen
Veblen Effect
Types of luxury goods for which the quantity demanded increases as the price inc
Veil of Ignorance
A classic ethical thought experiment and method of determining the morality of a
Vendor Lock-In
Making a system excessively dependent on an externally-supplied component.
Verbal Overshadowing
The phenomenon where giving a verbal description of a face (or other complex sti
Verbatim Effect
The observation that the "gist" of what someone has said is better remembered th
Vergangenheitsbewältigung
A public debate within a country on a problematic period of its recent history.
Verisimilitude
A philosophical concept that distinguishes between the relative and apparent (or
Verschlimmbesserung
German term that combines "verschlimmern" (to make worse) and "verbesserung" (im
Vimes Boot Theory
Concept introduced by British author Terry Pratchett in his Discworld series tha
Violent Agreement
When two sides believe themselves to be arguing, but in fact agree with one anot
Viparinama-dukkha
Translated as “the suffering of change”. It's the kind of unpleasantness that co
Vitality Curve
A performance management practice that calls for individuals to be ranked or rat
Von Restorff Effect
Predicts that when multiple homogeneous stimuli are presented, the stimulus that
W
Wabi-Sabi
The Japanese concept of a worldview centered on the acceptance of transience and
Wagon-Wheel Effect
Optical illusion where a spoked wheel appears to rotate differently from its tru
Wayfinding
The design term describing how one orients themselves and navigates within a spa
Weakest Link
The term given to a component in a system that is most likely to fail, regardles
Weber-Fechner Law
A proposed relationship between the magnitude of a physical stimulus and the int
Well-Traveled Road Effect
Cognitive bias where one underestimates the duration in traveling an often-used
Whataboutism
The argument states that a certain position is false or wrong or should be disre
Why Wasn’t I Consulted (WWIC)
Phrase used to describe the frustration or resentment that individuals may feel
Wicked Problems
A problem that is difficult or impossible to solve because of incomplete, contra
Wild Card
In card games, is used to stand-in for other cards. Generally, is a flexible ter
Will Rogers Effect
The consequence of moving an element from one set to another set which raises th
Win-Win
A conflict-resolution process that aims to accommodate all sides.
Winner's Curse
When the winner of an auction overpays the expected value of the auction item in
Winning a Battle but Losing the War
A strategy that wins a lesser objective but overlooks and loses the true intende
Winning Hearts and Minds
A strategy in which one side seeks to prevail not by the use of superior force,
Women -Are-Wonderful Effect
The phenomenon found in psychological and sociological research which suggests t
Word Frequency Effect
A psychological phenomenon where recognition times are faster for words seen mor
Word Superiority Effect
The phenomenon that people have better recognition of letters presented within w
Work-to-Rule
Labor strategy in which employees strictly follow their job descriptions and wor
Worse-Than-Average Effect
The tendency to underestimate one's achievements and capabilities in relation to
Z
Zeigarnik Effect
The ability of incomplete tasks to dominate attention, even after one has commit
Zeitgeist
The concept of an invisible agent or force dominating the characteristics of a g
Zero-Risk Bias
A tendency to prefer the complete elimination of a risk even when alternative op
Zero-Sum Vs. Non-Zero-Sum Thinking
Zero-Sum Thinking is a cognitive bias that describes a circumstance where one pa
Zipf's Law
The observation that given a large sample of words used, the frequency of any wo
Zone of Proximal Development
The difference between what a learner can do without help, and what they can't d