cobra effect

From cobra +‎ effect, a calque of German Kobra-Effekt, coined by the German economist Horst Siebert (1938–2009) in a 2001 book,^[1] from an anecdote about an incident during the British rule of colonial India in the 19th century in which the government, concerned about the large number of venomous cobras in Delhi, offered a bounty for each dead cobra turned in, which eventually led to enterprising people breeding more cobras for the income. When the government discontinued the programme the breeders set their cobras free, which led to an increase in the cobra population.

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˌkəʊbɹə ɪˈfɛkt/, /ˌkɒ-/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˌkoʊbɹə ɪˈfɛk(t)/, (weak vowel merger) /-əˈfɛk(t)/, /-iˈfɛk(t)/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɛkt
• Hyphenation: co‧bra ef‧fect

cobra effect (plural cobra effects)

1. The phenomenon where an attempted solution to a problem has an unintended consequence that makes the original problem worse.
   • 2002, Leslie H. Brickman, “Prepare the Next Step”, in Preparing the 21st Century Church, : Xulon Press, →ISBN, page 326:

     The short term effects of not prototyping can appear to be highly beneficial. After all, our groups seem to grow by leaps and bounds. What, though, is to be said about the long term effects if we fail to prototype? The consistent result is that the church is fatally bitten by the "cobra effect".

   • 2014, Stefan Kühl, “Unwilling Recipients of Spoon-feeding”, in Tino Brömme, Harriet Bailey, Annika Henderson, Lesley Warren, transl., The Sudoku Effect: Universities in the Vicious Circle of Bureaucracy (Springer Briefs in Education), Cham, Zug, Switzerland; Heidelberg, Baden-Wüttermberg: Springer, →DOI, →ISBN, →ISSN, page 47:

     The so-called ‘Cobra effect’ is one typical example of a side-effect that, when contrasted with the original intention, can be judged negatively. […] Even more problematically, the case can be made that just like with the ‘Cobra effect’, spoon-fed teaching methods stem from the initiatives of those who propagated the introduction of credit points and modules under the umbrella of ‘student-oriented’ learning. And it is every possible that they are not even aware of having caused more head-on teaching, a greater number of standardised exams and a reduction in choices.

   • 2018, Robert Greene, “Elevate Your Perspective: The Law of Shortsightedness”, in The Laws of Human Nature, New York, N.Y.: Viking, →ISBN, page 164:

     In fact, good intentions often lead to what are known as cobra effects, because people with the noblest intentions are often blinded by feelings of self-righteousness and do not consider the complex and often malevolent motivations of others.

   • 2021, Yarin Eski, “An Existentialist Victimology of Genocide?”, in Yarin Eski, editor, Genocide and Victimology (Victims, Culture and Society), Abington, Oxfordshire; New York, N.Y.: Routledge, →ISBN, page 18:

     An existentialist, critical victimology of genocide may then be achieved, unfolding cobra-effects of genocide laws and regulations in which the very legal tools and bodies that define a genocide and its perpetrating governments allow for other governments to get away with genocidal violence; it leaves behind hidden genocide victimhood (primary victimisation) and thus unacknowledged victimhood (secondary victimisation).

• perverse incentive on Wikipedia.Wikipedia