Is a statement that has the form of an explanation but whose "cause" is really the same as its "effect." In an explanatory fiction the same set of facts is described both by the behavior that is supposedly being explained and by the explanation. An example is, "Sarah doesn't read as well as you would expect from her reading aptitude scores because she is an under-achiever in reading." Both "cause" and "effect" describe the difference between Sarah's aptitude scores and reading performance.