Buridan's Donkey
Version 1.0.0 · Updated 2026-07-30
CORE DEFINITION
A philosophical fable: a donkey placed exactly between two identical piles of hay starves to death because it cannot decide which to eat. Scaffold role: decision catalyst. When options appear equivalent, any choice is better than none; introduce a random mechanism or a small preference to break the deadlock.
SCAFFOLDING EFFECT
Reduce cognitive load
Decision catalyst. When options appear equivalent, any choice is better than none; introduce a random mechanism or a small preference to break the deadlock.
Anchor fast decisions
The Buridan effect (the phenomenon revealed by Buridan's donkey) refers to the situation where, when multiple options are nearly equivalent in value and there is no decisive criterion, people fall into decision paralysis due to excessive deliberation. It emphasizes that 'perfect equilibrium hinders action'.
MINIMUM ACTION
In progress 0/3Practice this model in one real situation:
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Source support: Explicit
- en.wikipedia.orghttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buridan%27s_assverified
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