vicious circle

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vicious circle

A person feels trapped in a vicious circle of stress and poor sleep.

Definition
  1. Noun:
    • A situation in which the solution to one problem creates a new problem, which then makes the original problem worse: A self-perpetuating cycle of cause and effect where negative outcomes reinforce their own causes.
    • A logical fallacy in which a conclusion is assumed in one of the premises: An argument that uses its own conclusion as a premise, thus proving nothing.
Usage and Examples
  • Noun (Problem Cycle):
    • The company is caught in a vicious circle: low profits lead to low investment, which leads to even lower profits.
    • Poverty can be a vicious circle where lack of education leads to poor job prospects, which perpetuates poverty.
  • Noun (Logical Fallacy):
    • His argument that the book is truthful because it says so is a classic vicious circle.
Advanced Usage
  • "To be trapped/stuck in a vicious circle": To be unable to escape a self-reinforcing negative cycle.
    • Without intervention, the economy could be stuck in a vicious circle of inflation and wage demands.
  • "To break/escape a vicious circle": To take action to stop the negative cycle.
    • The new social program aims to break the vicious circle of homelessness and unemployment.
Variants and Related Words
  • Vicious cycle (n): A common alternative term with identical meaning to the "problem cycle" sense.
    • Stress and poor sleep often form a vicious cycle.
  • Cycle of deprivation (n): A specific socio-economic vicious circle.
  • Circular reasoning (n): A synonym for the logical fallacy sense.
Synonyms
  • Vicious cycle: (For the problem sense) A self-reinforcing negative loop.
  • Downward spiral: A situation continuously getting worse.
  • Circular argument/circular reasoning: (For the logical sense) An argument that assumes what it sets out to prove.
Related Phrases and Idioms
  • A catch-22: A situation where one cannot avoid a problem because of contradictory rules or conditions. (This is a related, but distinct, concept where one is trapped by conflicting requirements, rather than a reinforcing cycle).
    • It's a catch-22: you need experience to get a job, but you need a job to get experience. (This differs from a vicious circle, which involves one problem directly worsening another).
vicious circle

A person feels trapped in a vicious circle of stress and poor sleep.

Noun
  1. an argument that assumes that which is to be proved
  2. one trouble leads to another that aggravates the first

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