The term "inverse consequences"
[ or the "Law of Inverse Consequences"][ refers to results that are the opposite of the expected results as initially intended or planned.]["Chatham County Center: Green Thumb Prints Newsletter 2007
Index", NCSU.edu, May 2007, webpage:
]
NCSU-law
.
One consequence is in the "reverse predicament" of the other.[
]
History
The term "inverse consequences" has been in use for over 175 years (since at least 1835).[
''The Philosophy of Manufactures: Or, An Exposition''
(on factory systems), ]Andrew Ure
Andrew Ure Fellow of the Royal Society, FRS (18 May 1778 – 2 January 1857) was a Scottish people, Scottish physician, chemist, scriptural geologist, and early Organizational theory, business theorist who founded the Garnet Hill Observatory. ...
, 1835,
page 434 of 480 pages,
Google Books link
states "the influence of which upon them will be manifested
by inverse consequences; the one being in the reverse
predicament of the other."
The term was also used by Auguste Comte
Isidore Auguste Marie François Xavier Comte (; ; 19 January 1798 – 5 September 1857) was a French philosopher, mathematician and writer who formulated the doctrine of positivism. He is often regarded as the first philosopher of science in the ...
(1798–1857) in his book ''System of Positive Polity'' (published 1875), stating, "Inevitable increase in Complication, in proportion with the decrease of Generality, gives rise to two inverse consequences."
[
''System of Positive Polity: Social statics''
(on ]positivism
Positivism is a philosophical school that holds that all genuine knowledge is either true by definition or positivemeaning '' a posteriori'' facts derived by reason and logic from sensory experience.John J. Macionis, Linda M. Gerber, ''Soci ...
), Auguste Comte
Isidore Auguste Marie François Xavier Comte (; ; 19 January 1798 – 5 September 1857) was a French philosopher, mathematician and writer who formulated the doctrine of positivism. He is often regarded as the first philosopher of science in the ...
,
1875, page 376,
Google Books link
states "inevitable increase in Complication in proportion
with the decrease of Generality, gives rise to two inverse
consequences."
Documented examples
The term "inverse consequences" has been applied in numerous situations, for example:
* In treatment of drug addiction, medications intended to reduce one type of addiction might trigger another addiction: long-term treatment with opiate
An opiate is an alkaloid substance derived from opium (or poppy straw). It differs from the similar term ''opioid'' in that the latter is used to designate all substances, both natural and synthetic, that bind to opioid receptors in the brain ( ...
medications (such as morphine
Morphine, formerly also called morphia, is an opiate that is found naturally in opium, a dark brown resin produced by drying the latex of opium poppies (''Papaver somniferum''). It is mainly used as an analgesic (pain medication). There are ...
) has ''inverse consequences''.[
"Neuron : Experimental Genetic Approaches to Addiction",
A. Laakso, 2002, webpage:
:
states "exposure to psychostimulants such as cocaine leads
to sensitized response; long-term treatment with opiates
(such as morphine) also has inverse consequences".
]
* In management of work tasks, a total sequential execution, of work tasks, has inverse consequences, such as a decrease of the workload with an increase of the lead time.[
"Managing and Organizing the Cooperation in Design Processes"
M. David, PDF file:
tp://ftp-sop.inria.fr/acacia/COOP2004/soumissions/coop2004-M.David-16.pdf Inria-fr-COOP2004-PDF
]
* In asset management
Asset management is a systematic approach to the governance and realization of all value for which a group or entity is responsible. It may apply both to tangible assets (physical objects such as complex process or manufacturing plants, infrastr ...
, plans for portfolio management might have inverse consequences to the potential benefits.[
"The Infinite Asset: Managing Brands to Build New Value"
(on business & economics), Sam Hill, Chris Lederer,
2001, 238 pages,
]
Google Books link
states "...managers must understand and anticipate
inverse consequences every bit as much as they preach
the potential benefits of their action plans."
Related phrases
The concept of "inverse consequences" has a corollary
In mathematics and logic, a corollary ( , ) is a theorem of less importance which can be readily deduced from a previous, more notable statement. A corollary could, for instance, be a proposition which is incidentally proved while proving another ...
in other phrases, as well:
* "the plan backfired" - meaning the opposite result occurred, as in a gun firing backward, rather than forward.
See also
* Invasive species
An invasive species is an introduced species that harms its new environment. Invasive species adversely affect habitats and bioregions, causing ecological, environmental, and/or economic damage. The term can also be used for native spec ...
* Regression testing
Regression testing (rarely, ''non-regression testing'') is re-running functional and non-functional tests to ensure that previously developed and tested software still performs as expected after a change. If not, that would be called a '' regr ...
Notes
References
* Andrew Ure, ''The Philosophy of Manufactures: Or, An Exposition'' (on factory systems), 1835, page 434 of 480 pages, Google Books link
Google Books link
Adages
Complex systems theory
Logic
Risk analysis
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