Escalation is the process of increasing or rising, derived from the concept of an
escalator
An escalator is a moving staircase which carries people between floors of a building or structure. It consists of a motor-driven chain of individually linked steps on a track which cycle on a pair of tracks which keep the step tread horizo ...
. Specific uses of the term include:
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Cost escalation, an increase in the price of goods
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Conflict escalation
Conflict escalation is the process by which conflicts grow in severity or scale over time. That may refer to conflicts between individuals or groups in interpersonal relationships, or it may refer to the escalation of hostilities in a political or ...
, an increase in the intensity of a conflict
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Escalation hypothesis
{{More citations needed, date=January 2019
The Escalation Hypothesis is an evolutionary theory in biology put forward by Geerat J. Vermeij. It states that organisms are in constant conflict with one another and therefore devote many resources to ...
, a theory in evolutionary biology
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Escalation of commitment
Escalation of commitment is a human behavior pattern in which an individual or group facing increasingly negative outcomes from a decision, action, or investment nevertheless continue the behavior instead of altering course. The actor maintains ...
, an aspect of game theory
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Privilege escalation
Privilege escalation is the act of exploiting a bug, a design flaw, or a configuration oversight in an operating system or software application to gain elevated access to resources that are normally protected from an application or user. The re ...
, a computer security process
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Technological escalation Technological escalation describes the situation where two parties in competition tend to employ continual technological improvements in their attempt to defeat each other. Technology is defined here as a creative invention, either in the form of a ...
, a technological version of an arms race
Entertainment
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''Escalation'' (1968 Italian film), a 1968 Italian film
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''Escalation'' (1968 animated film), a 1968 anti-Vietnam War animated cartoon, directed by Ward Kimball
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Escalation Studios
Bethesda Game Studios Dallas LLC (formerly Escalation Studios, LLC) is an American video game developer based in Dallas, founded in 2007 by Tom Mustaine, Marc Tardif, and Shawn Green. The company was briefly owned by 6waves Lolapps in 2012 and ...
, an American video game developer
See also
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De-escalation
De-escalation is a human behavior that is intended to prevent escalation of conflicts. It may also refer to approaches in conflict resolution. People may become committed to behaviors that tend to escalate conflict, so specific measures must b ...
, an attempt to quell conflict
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