Editing Elliott wave principle (section)

==Pattern recognition and fractals==
Elliott's theory relies on analyzing price charts to identify wave patterns, which are fractal in nature, meaning they repeat across different timeframes, and discern what prices may do next; thus the application of the Wave Principle is a form of [[pattern recognition]].

The structures Elliott described meet the common definition of a [[fractal]] ([[self-similar]] patterns appearing at every degree of trend).{{cn|date=December 2023}} Elliott wave practitioners argue that just as naturally occurring fractals often expand and grow more complex over time, the model shows that collective human psychology develops in natural patterns, via buying and selling decisions reflected in market prices: "It's as though we are somehow programmed by mathematics. Seashell, galaxy, snowflake or human: we're all bound by the same order."<ref>John Casti (31 August 2002). "I know what you'll do next summer". ''New Scientist'', p. 29.</ref> Critics, however, argue it is a form of [[pareidolia]].