Self-perpetuating

Describing a process, system, or cycle that continues or renews itself without external input or intervention. It implies an inherent mechanism or characteristic that enables the ongoing existence and continuation of the subject. This often involves feedback loops, where the output of a process serves as an input to further stimulate or maintain that same process. Such systems tend to be resistant to change or interruption once established. These types of system are self-sustaining and are often hard to stop. This term suggests a closed-loop system of cause and effect, functioning independently of external forces, and operating in a repetitive or cyclical manner to ensure the ongoing existence and continuation of its function.

Self-perpetuating meaning with examples

• The company’s culture of long working hours and pressure, while initially designed to improve productivity, created a self-perpetuating cycle. Employees, exhausted, felt obligated to stay late to appease management. This led to further stress and overwork that reduced innovation and efficiency in the business, continuing the cycle of less-than-optimal performance.
• Poverty can be a self-perpetuating cycle: lack of access to education and healthcare leads to limited employment opportunities, which in turn reinforces financial constraints, making it even harder to improve their economic situation, perpetuating the cycle of poverty for themselves and future generations.
• The popularity of social media algorithms creates a self-perpetuating effect. Users see content related to what they've previously engaged with, reinforcing their existing beliefs and interests. This can result in echo chambers, making it hard to be exposed to diverse opinions or information and further strengthening their views and preferences.
• The drug market operates as a self-perpetuating system, driven by addiction and the desire to get more drugs to feed addictions. Increased demand leads to increased supply, and the negative consequences of substance use, such as health issues and the cost of this habit, feed the cycle, reinforcing demand, creating a hard-to-break cycle.
• The ongoing cycle of violence in the region forms a self-perpetuating system. Retaliation and revenge create a chain reaction, and each act of violence leads to renewed hostility, mistrust, and further escalation, perpetuating instability and making peace efforts exceptionally difficult to maintain or execute.