Cognitive Scaffold

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MENTAL MODEL · M5561

Opportunism

Opportunism
BusinessHigh supportEconomics
Included
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Version 1.0.0 · Updated 2026-07-30

CORE DEFINITION

“Self-interest seeking with guile”. People are not only self-interested but also pursue benefits through lying, cheating, and breaking promises. This is the core reason for high transaction costs in markets.

SCAFFOLDING EFFECT

psychology

Reduce cognitive load

The precautionary assumption in contracts. When designing contracts, one must assume the other party is an opportunist. Without monitoring and punishment mechanisms, relying solely on the other party's “goodwill” is extremely dangerous.

anchor

Anchor fast decisions

Refers to actors making discretionary choices, exploiting situational loopholes or information asymmetry to seek short-term private gains, disregarding rules or long-term relationships. In institutional economics, it is seen as a source of agency costs.

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Source support: Explicit

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    en.wikipedia.orghttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OpportunismZH · Explicit
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