Cognitive Scaffold

Preparing your thinking workspace

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MENTAL MODEL · M6491

APC

APC
DecideHigh supportDecision Science
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Version 1.0.0 · Updated 2026-07-30

CORE DEFINITION

Alternatives: Even if the current solution is good, force yourself to think "Are there other ways?" Possibilities: Instead of determining what happened, speculate on what "might" happen (opportunities or risks). Choices: Based on the first two, make the optimal choice aligned with your goals. Scaffolding role: Divergence and convergence of thinking. Most people's decisions are linear (encounter problem -> immediately find a solution). APC forces you to insert a mandatory divergent process (A and P) before the decision (Choice), preventing narrow decisions caused by mental set.

SCAFFOLDING EFFECT

psychology

Reduce cognitive load

Divergence and convergence of thinking. Most people's decisions are linear (encounter problem -> immediately find a solution). APC forces you to insert a mandatory divergent process (A and P) before the decision (Choice), preventing narrow decisions caused by mental set.

anchor

Anchor fast decisions

Based on "forced divergence before decision-making". Linear decision-making is prone to mental set; first Alternatives/Possibilities, then Choice, broaden the solution space before converging.

MINIMUM ACTION

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Source support: Explicit

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