# Name of effect: making something easier, more of that happens **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [December 1, 2021, 9:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-of-effect-making-something-easier-more-of-that-happens/955280 "2021-12-01T09:30:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2021, 9:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-of-effect-making-something-easier-more-of-that-happens/955280/1 "2021-12-01T09:30:09Z")
I’m looking for the name of an effect. Here are a couple examples: If a city changes their street lighting to LEDs to save money, lots more lighting will be added and they end up not saving anything. If the city makes it easier to move about on roads to reduce pollution/congestion, more people will drive on the roads and they end up not reducing either one. OK, it’s not that they never save or reduce anything, but the improvement will usually be short-lived. Anyway, I’m looking for the name of the effect. ---
**Author:** ![Francis\_Vaughan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/francis_vaughan/32/3093_2.png) [@Francis\_Vaughan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Francis_Vaughan)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2021, 10:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-of-effect-making-something-easier-more-of-that-happens/955280/3 "2021-12-01T10:06:26Z")
This close to, but perhaps not exactly, [Parkinson’s Law](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parkinson%27s_law). It may be close enough to consider a match. ---
**Author:** ![PatrickLondon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/patricklondon/32/4422_2.png) [@PatrickLondon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatrickLondon)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2021, 12:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-of-effect-making-something-easier-more-of-that-happens/955280/4 "2021-12-01T12:06:11Z")
Or a variant of the “law of unintended consequences”. Or just “counter-productive”. ---
**Author:** ![Schnitte](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/schnitte/32/9033_2.png) [@Schnitte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Schnitte)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2021, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-of-effect-making-something-easier-more-of-that-happens/955280/5 "2021-12-01T14:10:20Z")
Seems I accidentally deleted my previous post. It stated that the effect was called Jevons‘ paradox, or the Downs-Thomson paradox specifically for road congestion, or Wirth‘s law in IT for the effect that advanced in hardware are eaten up by software getting progressively more resource-hungry. ---
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2021, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-of-effect-making-something-easier-more-of-that-happens/955280/6 "2021-12-01T14:14:12Z")
> **[Jevons paradox](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jevons_paradox)** > > Pages for logged out editors learn more > > > > In economics, the Jevons paradox (/ˈdʒɛvənz/; sometimes Jevons effect) occurs when technological progress or government policy increases the efficiency with which a resource is used (reducing the amount necessary for any one use), but the falling cost of use increases its demand, increasing, rather than reducing, resource use. The Jevons' effect is perhaps the most widely known paradox in environmental economics. However, governments and enviro... ---
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2021, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-of-effect-making-something-easier-more-of-that-happens/955280/7 "2021-12-01T14:17:53Z")
One example - before the invention of Watts’ steam engine, coal powered engines existed, but were terribly inefficient - so they were only used in places where there was a surplus of coal (like coal mines). Watts’ steam engine made steam power efficient - which led to a massive _increase_ in the amount of coal used. ---
**Author:** ![am77494](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d2c977/32.png) [@am77494](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/am77494)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2021, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-of-effect-making-something-easier-more-of-that-happens/955280/8 "2021-12-01T14:38:04Z")
Richard Farson goes through several cases like the OP. Like the Washing Machine was invented to make the laundry person’s chore easier. But people started wearing more clean clothes and not reusing clothes, and it made their life harder. He also went into length describing how people hate political change (even for the better) and gives the example of Gorbachev, who tried to introduce reforms and was hated. Give it a read, if you like : > **[Management of the Absurd: Farson, Richard, Crichton, Michael: 9780684830445:...](https://www.amazon.com/Management-Absurd-Michael-Crichton/dp/0684830442)** > > Management of the Absurd \[Farson, Richard, Crichton, Michael\] on Amazon.com. \*FREE\* shipping on qualifying offers. Management of the Absurd