── ── Cognitive bias

Status Quo Bias

Status quo bias is the systematic preference for the current state over available alternatives — even when alternatives are objectively superior by the person's own values. "Doing nothing" is an active decision to accept the current state with real opportunity costs, not a non-choice. Coined by Samuelson & Zeckhauser (1988). Organ donation consent rates of 4–99% across European countries differ…

How it works

Step 1 — Identify default: Current state · who controls it · how established · how long without re-evaluation. Step 2 — Identify alternatives: List alternatives · why not adopted · substantive cost vs. inertia? Step 3 — Fresh-choice test: Which option would you choose starting from scratch today? Gap from status quo? Switching cost estimate · net value of better alternative minus switching cost. Step 4 — Cost of inaction: Annual cost of status quo over optimal · over 3 years · break-even switching point · is the status quo deteriorating? Step 5 — Direction: Design (what default serves average user?) or Audit (override / accept with justification / redesign)? Step 6 — Implement: Change plan · timeline · ownership · review date.

When to use it

• user says 'we've always done it this way', 'changing now would be too disruptive', or 'no one is complaining so why change'
• a team is slow to adopt a clearly better option
• someone frames inaction as safe when omission carries real costs
• you are designing enrollment/default settings and need to choose opt-in vs opt-out

Worked example

Samuelson & Zeckhauser 1988 + Johnson & Goldstein 2003

William Samuelson (Boston University) and Richard Zeckhauser (Harvard Kennedy School) were motivated by observations of apparent irrationality in economic behavior — people seemed to cling to existing arrangements far beyond what rational switching-cost calculations would justify. Their 1988 paper is the foundational empirical document for status quo bias.