Theorem T2: Cognitive Budget Theorem - Selection Logic

Theorem statement

Theorem T2: Cognitive Budget Theorem: Rational decision-making allocates cognitive resources according to value and reversibility.

Premises

• A1 Finitude: /en/wiki/axiom-1-finitude
• A3 Improvability: /en/wiki/axiom-3-improvability

Derivation logic (sketch)

1. Cognitive resources (time, attention, energy) are scarce (A1).
2. Improving decisions requires investment (A3).
3. Therefore rational strategy is to allocate effort where marginal benefit is highest: high value or low reversibility decisions.[^1]

Corollaries

• T2.1 High-value decisions merit more effort: /en/wiki/corollary-t2-1
• T2.2 Low-reversibility decisions merit more effort: /en/wiki/corollary-t2-2
• T2.3 Use heuristics for low-value reversible decisions: /en/wiki/corollary-t2-3

Practical allocation table (zh-aligned)

References

1. Payne, J. W., Bettman, J. R., & Johnson, E. J. (1993). The Adaptive Decision Maker. Cambridge University Press.[source]
2. Simon, H. A. (1955). A behavioral model of rational choice. Quarterly Journal of Economics, 69(1), 99–18.[source]

Further Reading

• Cognitive budget
• Decision reversibility
• T2.3: Heuristics