doom loop
Self-reinforcing collapse spiral
A doom loop is a self-reinforcing cycle of decline where each negative outcome triggers another, making escape increasingly difficult.
The term appears in economics (falling revenues lead to cuts that reduce revenues further), urban planning (vacancy drives away business, creating more vacancy), and psychology (anxiety causes avoidance that deepens anxiety).
The city's downtown entered a doom loop after the pandemic emptied office buildings.
Device for catching animals
- quagmireSoft, wet ground
- quicksandYielding, engulfing sediment
- mireBoggy, waterlogged terrain
- snareDevice for catching prey
morass · gridlock · deadlock · stalemate · impasse · bind · predicament · inescapable
Prolonged, repetitive thinking
- catastrophizingImagining worst-case outcomes
- overthinkingDwelling excessively on thoughts
- obsessionPersistent, intrusive preoccupation
- cognitive distortionBiased mental interpretation pattern
learned helplessness · self-sabotage · avoidance · procrastination · shame spiral · intrusive thoughts
State without hope
- fatalismDoctrine of inevitable outcomes
- defeatismAcceptance of inevitable failure
- pessimismExpecting unfavorable outcomes
- resignationVoluntary relinquishment of position
desolation · bleakness · gloom · despondency · helplessness · futility · inevitability · dread
Curve winding around center
- feedbackReturned response data
- vortexRotating fluid column
- perpetuationMaking something endure
- repetitionAct of redoing
recurrence · iteration · chain · sequence · progression · circuit · whirlpool · gyre
Prolonged economic decline
- debt spiralSelf-perpetuating financial decline
- bankruptcyLegal status when insolvent
- contagionDisease spread by contact
- credit crunchSevere reduction in lending
insolvency · default · deleveraging · liquidity crisis · meltdown · bank run · austerity · stagflation
Process of declining quality
- worseningBecoming more severe
- collapseSudden structural failure
- downward spiralSelf-reinforcing deterioration
- degradationDecline in condition
erosion · decay · regression · backslide · slump · nosedive · plummet · crumble
trap
Device for catching animals
snare · morass · gridlock · deadlock · stalemate · impasse · bind · predicament · inescapable · stuck
rumination
Prolonged, repetitive thinking
- catastrophizingImagining worst-case outcomes
- overthinkingDwelling excessively on thoughts
- obsessionPersistent, intrusive preoccupation
cognitive distortion · learned helplessness · self-sabotage · avoidance · procrastination · shame spiral · intrusive thoughts
hopelessness
State without hope
- fatalismDoctrine of inevitable outcomes
- defeatismAcceptance of inevitable failure
- pessimismExpecting unfavorable outcomes
resignation · desolation · bleakness · gloom · despondency · helplessness · futility · inevitability · dread · foreboding
spiral
Curve winding around center
- feedbackReturned response data
- vortexRotating fluid column
- perpetuationMaking something endure
repetition · recurrence · iteration · chain · sequence · progression · circuit · whirlpool · gyre · carousel
recession
Prolonged economic decline
- debt spiralSelf-perpetuating financial decline
- bankruptcyLegal status when insolvent
- contagionDisease spread by contact
credit crunch · insolvency · default · deleveraging · liquidity crisis · meltdown · bank run · austerity · stagflation · depression
deterioration
Process of declining quality
- worseningBecoming more severe
- collapseSudden structural failure
- downward spiralSelf-reinforcing deterioration
degradation · erosion · decay · regression · backslide · slump · nosedive · plummet · crumble · atrophy
- predicamentspredicament, dilemma, bind, pickle, pinch
- escalationescalation, escalate, ratchet up, worsen, intensify
doom loopvirtuous cycle
Self-perpetuating beneficial pattern
virtuous circle · upward spiral · snowball effect · winning streak · rising tide
doom loopequilibrium
State of balance
homeostasis · steady state · balance · self-correction · stabilization
doom looprecovery
Regaining what was lost
turnaround · breakout · escape velocity · course correction · rebound
doom, loop, doomed, dooming, dooms, doomsday, doomsayer, loops, looped