Over on r/technicalwriting I'm having a debate with someone regarding whether this is a general principle or not. To be clear, I have no idea how niche or widespread this problem, is. My hunch is that it's a brilliant insight that applies to technical writing in many industries. For now it's just an idea that I think deserves a lot more thought and discussion.
I’d say it’s an interesting phrasing of a general principle, namely the four types of technical documentation. “Preparing people for decisions” is the first and third types (references and explanations) and “guiding people through tasks” is the second and fourth types (instructions and tutorials). IMO!
