The act of explaining away any pattern, correlation, or meaningful connection as mere coincidence. Coincidentification dismisses evidence of causality, synchronicity, or design as “
just chance,” often without statistical or logical analysis. It is common in
hyper‑skeptic circles, where any suggestion of
non‑
random structure is met with “that’s a coincidence.” Critics argue that coincidentification is a form of cognitive laziness: it avoids investigating the pattern. It also ignores that coincidences can be real and informative (
e.g., rare alignments that signal causation). It is the opposite of apophenia.
Coincidentification Example: “He coincidentified the repeated failures of the bridge as ‘
just bad
luck,’ ignoring the engineering reports. His dismissal delayed repairs until the collapse. Coincidence was not a
safety strategy.”