Shirky Principle
The notion that institutions will try to preserve the problem to which they are the solution.
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Origin
Named after writer and NYU professor Clay Shirky, whose 2008 book Here Comes Everybody argued that institutions often become obstacles to the very changes they should enable. In April 2010, Kevin Kelly, founding executive editor of Wired, distilled Shirky's insight into the maxim and dubbed it the Shirky Principle, noting its kinship with the Peter Principle.
Updated February 22, 2026