← all facts
decision making
You prefer the way things are by default.
The status quo bias describes the tendency to maintain a current state because the potential losses of changing are perceived as greater than the benefits, a concept driven by loss aversion.
Change the focus from 'simply because changing requires effort' to 'because potential losses are weighted more heavily than potential gains'.
Your current life is a product of inertia.
Where this comes from
- Study
- Samuelson and Zeckhauser, 1988
- What the check found
- The claim oversimplifies the mechanism. It isn't just about 'effort' or 'laziness,' but about the cognitive asymmetry where potential losses feel more impactful than potential gains.
- Confidence
- Solid, with limits
Related
One of these every day, and every one names the study it came from. When a finding is contested, it says so.