Factor

A factor is anything taken into account when making a decision — a trait, characteristic, dimension, or sub-goal. "Price", "fuel economy", "color", "crash safety" are factors when choosing a car. They are also sub-goals of the overall goal of "buy a good car".

Factors in CF

• Factors are sub-goals. Each factor is a small goal that contributes to the overall goal.
• Factors have dimensions. Price is in dollars; fuel economy is in miles per gallon. You can't directly add them.
• Most factors are not borderline. They are obviously sufficient or obviously insufficient.

Factor categories

CF distinguishes:

• Digital factors. Already categorical (e.g., "automatic vs manual transmission").
• Analog factors. Continuous (e.g., "price from $10,000 to $50,000").
• Quantitatively different factors. Same dimension, different amounts.
• Qualitatively different factors. Different dimensions altogether.

How to handle factors

1. List candidates. Brainstorm without filtering.
2. Check relevance. Are these factors actually relevant to the goal?
3. Find breakpoints. Where do quantitative changes become qualitative?
4. Apply pass/fail. Decide whether each option passes each factor's breakpoint.
5. Multiply pass/fail factors. "All must pass" is and; default behaviour.

"A factor is a trait, characteristic or quality. A factor is also a sub-goal: a part of your overall goal." — criticalfallibilism.com