The Uniqueness Trap

Uniqueness bias is what psychologists call the tendency individuals have to think they’re more unusual than they actually are. In the field of project management, it manifests itself as the belief that projects are one of a kind. This is partly a conscious choice, stemming from the view that when something is presented as unique and new, it’s more likely to attract support and funding. But the bias is also deeply entrenched in the project management profession and the literature about it. The U.S.-based Project Management Institute, for example, defines a project as “a temporary endeavor undertaken to create a unique product, service, or result.” The UK-based Association for Project Management defines a project similarly, as a “unique, transient endeavour.” The very first study of projects as a management problem identified their finite duration as a “unique aspect of the project manager’s job.” And in his classic book Development Projects Observed, Albert O. Hirschman concluded that each project he had studied represented “a unique constellation of experiences and consequences.”