Suppose we call a Type A Error attempting to attack a thick problem with thin methods, and a Type B Error attempting to attack a thin problem with thick methods. Not all problems are inherently thick or thin, but plausibly the discipline of economics might be a massive A-error, while continental philosophy might plausibly be a massive B-error.

What are some non-obvious heuristics for reducing errors of these sorts? (I can think of some obvious ones, but my guess is that they're so thoroughly internalized that the nonobvious heuristics will end up correcting for them as often as not.)