Framework · The Hook Model · Hooked
Hook scorecard: five links, scored 0-5
An audit built on the book's five questions about a product: what users really want relief from, what brings them back, the simplest action, whether the reward satisfies yet leaves them wanting more, and what they invest. We split the trigger into internal and external and score each link from 0 to 5; the lowest link is the next thing to fix.
Plain label: five-link habit loop auditAlso known as: Hook lens, five fundamental questions, hook audit, weakest link, quick scan
From the book
The author closes the model with five questions to ask of any product, covering the internal trigger, the external trigger, the action, the variable reward and the investment, and notes that a weak link keeps users from moving to self-started use. He also suggests running new ideas through the model to filter out weak ones and to find an existing product's weakest step. HK-MEA07 (Hooked Ch.6)
What is ours [Analyst]
- The five links (trigger split into internal and external) and every anchor from 0 to 5 are our construct, built on those questions. HK-T14 (Hooked Ch.6)
- Quick scan: each link first gets one word (present, weak, missing or unknown) from whatever evidence exists. Unknown is not zero.
- Full scoring: only the links the binding stage needs, with evidence caps (stated, observed, measured, tested) applied on top of the design-quality anchors.
- Procedure: check business fit and the Habit Zone first, score, fix the lowest link, run Habit Testing, re-score each cycle.
Limits
The scorecard has no published reliability data, and the Hook Model behind it is a practical tool, not a validated theory Evidence grade D. Practitioner framework or anecdote: plausible, untested.. Treat scores as a structured way to find the weakest link, not as measurements.
Limits
What we don’t claim
- The Hook Model is a practical design tool, not a validated or complete theory of behavior.Hooked, Introduction
Sources
Hooked · Nir Eyal
Ch.6 · Ch.8
Source IDs: HK-T14HK-MEA07
Book content is paraphrased, never quoted at length. Last verified October 24, 2026.
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