Rumination: definition and example
Rumination is repeatedly and passively dwelling on your distress, its causes, and its consequences, without moving toward a solution. It feels like thinking a problem through, but it tends to keep you circling the same painful questions.
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What research links it to
Nolen-Hoeksema, Wisco, and Lyubomirsky reviewed evidence that rumination worsens low mood, magnifies negative thinking, impairs problem solving, gets in the way of taking action, and erodes social support (Nolen-Hoeksema, Wisco, and Lyubomirsky, 2008). Their review is about patterns across many studies; it does not mean every reflective moment is harmful.
Rumination versus reflection
Rumination asks "Why does this always happen to me?" on repeat. Reflection asks "What happened, what part was mine, and what will I try next time?" and then stops. Research by Ayduk and Kross suggests that reflecting from a distanced, observer's view helps people make sense of painful events, while replaying them from an immersed first-person view tends to feed rumination (Ayduk and Kross, 2010).
Rumination versus worry
Rumination usually looks backward at what happened and why. Worry usually looks forward at what might go wrong. Both can loop. A useful question for either: "Is this thought helping me take a next step, or am I going around the same circle?"
An example and an exit
At 1 a.m. you are replaying a comment you made at work, rewriting it twenty ways. One exit: write the event in three sentences, add one thing you could do tomorrow ("Tell Priya I meant the deadline, not her work"), and close the notebook. Another: switch to something absorbing for fifteen minutes. If dwelling persists for weeks or affects sleep and daily life, a licensed professional can help.
Related: self-distancing, expressive writing, and regret.
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Research notes
- Susan Nolen-Hoeksema, Blair E. Wisco, Sonja Lyubomirsky (2008). Rethinking Rumination. Perspectives on Psychological Science. Reviews evidence that rumination worsens depression, enhances negative thinking, impairs problem solving, interferes with instrumental behavior, and erodes social support, and that it is also linked to anxiety, binge eating, binge drinking, and self-harm. Limits: review paper. doi.org/10.1111/j.1745-6924.2008.00088.x
- Özlem Ayduk, Ethan Kross (2010). Analyzing Negative Experiences Without Ruminating: The Role of Self-Distancing in Enabling Adaptive Self-Reflection. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 4(10), 841-854. Reviews research suggesting that reflecting on a painful experience from a self-distanced, observer's view helps people make sense of it, while replaying it from an immersed first-person view tends to feed rumination. doi.org/10.1111/j.1751-9004.2010.00301.x
Related
- No. 01EQ glossaryThe words behind emotional intelligence, defined.
- No. 02Self-distancingSelf-distancing is reflecting on your own experience from an outside observer's point of view, for example asking "Why is Jordan so upset?" instead of "Why am I so upset?" when replaying a hard day.
- No. 03Cognitive reappraisalCognitive reappraisal is changing how you interpret a situation so that its emotional impact changes, for example reading a terse email as rushed rather than hostile.
- No. 04Expressive writingExpressive writing is a structured exercise in which you write your deepest thoughts and feelings about a difficult experience, usually in short sessions over a few days.
- No. 05RegretWishing you had chosen differently
- No. 06Emotional Intelligence Test: Free EQ AssessmentExplore your emotional choices with a free 36-item assessment for adults. Get a profile summary and strongest area, then choose whether to unlock the full report.
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