The original Wigner's friend scenarios

The Wigner's friend paradox, like the Schrödinger's cat paradox, challenges our understanding of the foundations of quantum theory. The paradox is best illustrated by a brief scenario featuring two observers who draw different conclusions. We describe the Wigner's friend scenario as told by E. P. Wigner, and then an earlier version as told by Hugh Everett. Wigner and Everett offer different resolutions of essentially the same paradox. Decoherence theory provides a third resolution. Despite different interpretations (or their absence), these three stories fit together to form a consistent picture without a paradox.

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Publication Details

Journal
American Journal of Physics
Published
2026-03-23
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1119/5.0303052
Primary Topic
Quantum Mechanics and Applications
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
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article

The original Wigner's friend scenarios

Jay Lawrence
American Journal of Physics
Quantum Mechanics and Applications
article

The original Wigner's friend scenarios

Jay Lawrence
article en

Abstract

The Wigner's friend paradox, like the Schrödinger's cat paradox, challenges our understanding of the foundations of quantum theory. The paradox is best illustrated by a brief scenario featuring two observers who draw different conclusions. We describe the Wigner's friend scenario as told by E. P. Wigner, and then an earlier version as told by Hugh Everett. Wigner and Everett offer different resolutions of essentially the same paradox. Decoherence theory provides a third resolution. Despite different interpretations (or their absence), these three stories fit together to form a consistent picture without a paradox.

American Journal of PhysicsVol. 94(4)
Dartmouth College (US)
Reduced inequalities
Openalex Percentile: Top 10%
Quantum Mechanics and Applications
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The original Wigner's friend scenarios — Jay Lawrence · American Journal of Physics (2026) | TGRS Research Map | TGRS