maladapt
Fail to adjust
To maladapt is to adapt poorly or inappropriately to an environment or situation, developing responses that ultimately prove harmful rather than helpful.
The term appears mostly in psychology and biology, where maladaptive behaviors or traits decrease an organism's fitness or well-being: Some species maladapt to rapid environmental changes.
The adjective maladaptive is far more common than the verb.
Permanent DNA alteration
- fitnessGood physical shape
- survivalRemaining alive against odds
- environmentExternal conditions affecting life
- mismatchIncompatible combination
vestigial · phenotype · trait · genetic · organism · species · disadvantage · extinction
Abnormal or unhealthy operation
- anxietyPersistent apprehensive distress
- depressionProlonged low state
- neurosisFunctional mental disorder
- traumaLasting psychological wound
coping · avoidance · dissociation · hypervigilance · rumination · compulsion · attachment · regression
Abnormal or unhealthy operation
- breakdownFailure or decomposition
- failureLack of success
- inefficiencySuboptimal use of resources
- rigidityState of being unbending
obsolescence · mismatch · unsustainable · counterproductive · institutional · organizational · structural · policy
Settled regular tendency
- patternRecurring arrangement or template
- responseAnswer to stimulus
- conditioningLearned behavioral adaptation
- reinforcementAdding support or encouragement
addiction · compulsion · avoidance · self-harm · binge · procrastination · aggression · passivity
mutation
Permanent DNA alteration
- fitnessGood physical shape
- survivalRemaining alive against odds
- environmentExternal conditions affecting life
mismatch · vestigial · phenotype · trait · genetic · organism · species · disadvantage · extinction · reproductive
dysfunction
Abnormal or unhealthy operation
- anxietyPersistent apprehensive distress
- depressionProlonged low state
- neurosisFunctional mental disorder
trauma · coping · avoidance · dissociation · hypervigilance · rumination · compulsion · attachment · regression · denial
dysfunction
Abnormal or unhealthy operation
- breakdownFailure or decomposition
- failureLack of success
- inefficiencySuboptimal use of resources
rigidity · obsolescence · mismatch · unsustainable · counterproductive · institutional · organizational · structural · policy · bureaucratic
habit
Settled regular tendency
- patternRecurring arrangement or template
- responseAnswer to stimulus
- conditioningLearned behavioral adaptation
reinforcement · addiction · compulsion · avoidance · self-harm · binge · procrastination · aggression · passivity · rigidity
maladaptadapt
Modify for new conditions
thrive · flourish · fit · acclimate · acclimatize
- maladaptive behaviorHarmful patterns undermining wellbeing
maladaptive, maladaptation, maladapted, maladaptations, maladapting