# PAT-0290 — Divergent Outputs

## Ontology Metadata

Code: PAT-0290
Version: PAT-0290@0.1.0
Ontology release: 0.1.0
Updated: 2026-05-10T00:00:00Z
Canonical URL: /workbench/patterns/divergent-outputs/

## Summary

A structural condition where parallel evaluations under comparable scope and shared authority produce non-equivalent outputs.

## Primary Lenses

- LEN-0170 — Convergence Lens
  - URL: /workbench/lenses/convergence-lens/
  - Summary: Compares parallel structural systems to determine whether they align under shared authority.
- LEN-0290 — Variance / Entropy Lens
  - URL: /workbench/lenses/variance-entropy-lens/
  - Summary: Measures structural variability across repeated or comparable evaluations and identifies divergence beyond expected bounds.

## Secondary Lenses

- LEN-0180 — Determinism Lens
  - URL: /workbench/lenses/determinism-lens/
  - Summary: Evaluates whether identical structural inputs produce equivalent structural outputs across repeated executions.
- LEN-0140 — Compression Lens
  - URL: /workbench/lenses/compression-lens/
  - Summary: Reduces structural graphs into stable minimal representations for comparison, redundancy detection, and diffing.

## Primary Issue Matches

- ISS-0063 — Results Vary Too Much
  - URL: /workbench/issues/results-vary-too-much/
  - Summary: Repeated or comparable runs produce outputs that vary more than the task, workflow, or user can tolerate.
- ISS-0072 — Same Instructions Allow Different Outputs
  - URL: /workbench/issues/same-instructions-allow-different-outputs/
  - Summary: The same instructions are broad or underspecified enough to allow materially different outputs that all appear compliant.

## Supporting Issue Matches

- ISS-0104 — One Prompt Carries Too Many Meanings
  - URL: /workbench/issues/one-prompt-carries-too-many-meanings/
  - Summary: A single prompt carries too many meanings, goals, roles, constraints, or implied tasks for the AI to interpret consistently.
- ISS-0052 — Output Breaks After Model Change
  - URL: /workbench/issues/output-breaks-after-model-change/
  - Summary: Output that previously worked begins failing after a model, mode, runtime, or product behavior changes.
- ISS-0083 — Parallel Reviews Never Agree
  - URL: /workbench/issues/parallel-reviews-never-agree/
  - Summary: Parallel AI, human, workflow, or tool reviews keep producing different results without resolving into a shared decision state.
- ISS-0058 — Prompt Behavior Changed Without Version Change
  - URL: /workbench/issues/prompt-behavior-changed-without-version-change/
  - Summary: A prompt begins producing different behavior even though no prompt version, model version, workflow version, or declared dependency change is recorded.
- ISS-0071 — Prompt Has Too Many Valid Interpretations
  - URL: /workbench/issues/prompt-has-too-many-valid-interpretations/
  - Summary: The prompt allows too many reasonable interpretations, causing the AI to choose among valid paths without enough guidance.
- ISS-0005 — Prompt Only Works After Retry
  - URL: /workbench/issues/prompt-only-works-after-retry/
  - Summary: The prompt fails, misroutes, or produces an unusable response on one attempt but works after retry without a meaningful change to the input.
- ISS-0001 — Similar Cases Route to Different Outcomes
  - URL: /workbench/issues/similar-cases-route-to-different-outcomes/
  - Summary: Similar inputs, cases, prompts, or workflow states are routed to different outcomes without a declared difference that explains the split.
- ISS-0006 — Validation Result Changes on Retry
  - URL: /workbench/issues/validation-result-changes-on-retry/
  - Summary: A validation, grading, review, classification, or pass/fail result changes after retry even though the input and declared validation rules did not change.