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decision making
You persist in bad decisions because of past costs.
The sunk cost fallacy describes the tendency to continue an endeavor once an investment in money, effort, or time has been made.
Even when faced with data showing that the current path will result in a net loss, individuals often choose to continue to avoid the feeling of 'wasting' what they already spent. The logic dictates that past costs are irrelevant to future outcomes, but the brain disagrees.
You are throwing good money after bad to comfort your own ego.
Where this comes from
- Study
- Arkes & Blumer, 1985
- What the check found
- The definition is accurately attributed to the requested source.
- Confidence
- Well replicated
Related
One of these every day, and every one names the study it came from. When a finding is contested, it says so.