There’s a word for that — 2020 election edition
As we await the results of the 2020 presidential election, here are a few phrases to describe what we may be seeing or doing or how we may be feeling.
Availability cascade — the belief that if you hear or read about something frequently it must be true. This is similar to the bandwagon effect, the idea that if many people believe in something or do something, it must be true or acceptable.
Fact checking and critical thinking are ways to fight against the availability cascade and bandwagon effect.
Catastophizing — assuming the worst will happen or that the worst possible outcome will occur.
Brian catastrophized about bombing the SAT for weeks before he took the test.
Confirmation bias — embracing information that confirms your beliefs while ignoring or rejecting information that casts doubt on those beliefs.
Receiving news from only once source and labeling all others as “fake news” is an example of confirmation bias.
Doom scrolling — the desire to continuously scroll through bad news on new sites or in social media feeds.
To stop my doom scrolling, I’ve removed all news apps from my phone.
Election stress disorder — the experience of stress, anxiety, and feeling of doom brought about by the 2020 election.
Many find that the best cure for election stress disorder is a good box of wine.
Emotional eating — eating not because you are hungry, but because you are stressed, anxious, or bored.
The week of my wedding was an emotional eating marathon.
Gambler’s fallacy — the mistaken belief that past events can influence future events even though the events are entirely independent.
The belief that if a coin just landed on heads twice in a row, then it’s likely to land on tails next is a gambler’s fallacy.
Gaslighting — the technique of distorting known facts, memories, events, and evidence to invalidate a person’s experience. The idea is to make those who disagree with the gaslighter question their ability, memory, or sanity.
Gaslighters use lies, false promises, and personal attacks to make those around them doubt themselves.
Perseverate — the act of repeating a word or action over and over again; to repeat something insistently.
On election night, my husband perseverated on the election results and was glued to CNN.
Stomach flip — the lurch in your stomach that occurs in response to stress, fear, or anxiety.
My stomach flips every time I get an unexpected call from my boss.
Readers — Any others to add to this list?
