Framework

SCARF Model

Brain-based model by David Rock. Five social domains — Status, Certainty, Autonomy, Relatedness, Fairness — drive social threat or reward.

At a glance
Type
Framework
5
Domains
2008
First published
Science, 2003
Foundational fMRI study
Your Brain at Work
Canonical book
Overview

About

The brain treats social experience as a survival concern. The five SCARF domains — Status, Certainty, Autonomy, Relatedness, Fairness — describe where threat or reward shows up in everyday social life.
After David Rock, NeuroLeadership Journal (2008)
Frequently asked

Questions about SCARF Model

SCARF is an acronym for the five social domains David Rock identified as primary drivers of social threat and reward responses in the brain: Status (one's relative importance to others), Certainty (one's ability to predict the future), Autonomy (one's sense of control over events), Relatedness (one's sense of safety and belonging with others), and Fairness (one's perception of fair exchange between people). Each domain operates bidirectionally — threats activate the brain's threat circuitry and constrain cognition; rewards activate reward circuitry and expand capacity.

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