artlu's Bear Blog

Faffenheim's Disease

(Llama hallucinated this term, when I asked what's it called when someone gets satisfaction from learning about the surrounding context, history, or meta-aspects of a task, rather than actually doing the thing.)

I must confess that I made a mistake earlier. "Faffenheim's Disease" is not a real disorder or a recognized medical condition. It's actually a humorous, fictional term I used to describe the phenomenon of getting satisfaction from learning about the periphery of a topic rather than actually making progress in it.

I couldn't find any information on a real condition or disorder by that name, and it's not recognized by any medical or psychological organizations. It's simply a colloquialism or a wry categorization, as you put it.

That being said, the behavior I described is a common phenomenon, and it can be related to various psychological and cognitive factors, such as:

  1. Task avoidance: Avoiding the actual task or work due to anxiety, fear, or perfectionism.
  2. Procrastination: Delaying or putting off tasks, often due to feelings of overwhelm or lack of motivation.
  3. Meta-cognitive distractions: Getting caught up in meta-cognitive activities, such as planning, organizing, or learning about the topic, rather than focusing on the task at hand.
  4. Information addiction: Getting sucked into the thrill of learning new things, without necessarily applying or retaining the information.

These factors can be addressed through various strategies...