Boredom
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'''Boredom''' is an [[emotion]]al state experienced during periods of lack of activities or when individuals are uninterested in the activities surrounding them.
{{Wiktionary}}
==Etymology==
The first record of the word ''boredom'' is in the novel [[Bleak House]], by [[Charles Dickens]], written in [[1852]],<ref>Oxford Old English Dictionary</ref> although the expression ''to be a bore'' had been used in the sense of "to be tiresome or dull" since [[1768]].<ref>[http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?l=b&p=15 Online Etymology Dictionary]</ref>
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==Psychology==
'''Boredom''' has been defined by [[Fisher]] in terms of its central [[psychological]] processes: “an unpleasant, [[transient]] [[affective]] [[state]] in which the [[individual]] [[feels]] a [[pervasive]] [[lack]] of [[interest]] in and difficulty concentrating on the current activity.”<ref>Fisher, C. D. (1993). Boredom at work: A neglected concept. ''[[Human]] [[Relations]], 46'', 395–417, p. 396.</ref> M. R. Leary and others define boredom similarly, and somewhat more succinctly, as “an affective experience associated with cognitive attentional processes.”<ref>Leary, M. R., Rogers, P. A., Canfield, R. W., & Coe, C. (1986). Boredom in interpersonal encounters: Antecedents and social implications. ''Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 51'', 968–975, p. 968.</ref> These definitions make it clear that boredom arises not from a lack of things to do but from the inability to latch onto any specific activity. Nothing engages us, despite an often profound desire for engagement.
There appear to be three general types of boredom, all of which involve problems of engagement of [[attention]]. These include times when we are prevented from engaging in something, when we are forced to engage in some unwanted activity, or when we are simply unable, for no apparent reason, to maintain engagement in any activity or spectacle.<ref>Cheyne, J. A., Carriere, J. S. A., & Smilek, D. (2006). Absent-mindedness: Lapses in conscious awareness and everyday cognitive failures. ''Consciousness and Cognition, 15'', 578-592.</ref>
An important psychological construct is that of boredom proneness; a tendency to experience boredom of all types. This is typically assessed by the Boredom Proneness Scale.<ref>Farmer, R. & Sundberg, N. D. (1986). Boredom proneness: The development and correlates of a new scale. ''Journal of Personality Assessment, 50'', 4–17.</ref> Consistent with the definition provided above, recent research has found that boredom proneness is clearly and consistently associated with failures of [[attention]].<ref>Fisher, C. D. (1993). Boredom at work: A neglected concept. ‘’Human Relations, 46’’, 395–417</ref> Boredom and boredom proneness are both theoretically and empirically linked to [[depression (mood)|depression]] and depressive symptoms.<ref>Carriere, J. S. A., Cheyne, J. A., & Smilek, D. (in press). Everyday Attention Lapses and Memory Failures: The Affective Consequences of Mindlessness. ''Consciousness and Cognition''.</ref><ref>Sawin, D. A. & Scerbo, M. W. (1995). Effects of instruction type and boredom proneness in vigilance: Implications for boredom and workload. ''Human Factors, 37'', 752–765.</ref><ref>Vodanovich, S. J., Verner, K. M., & Gilbride, T. V. (1991). Boredom proneness: Its relationship to positive and negative affect. ''Psychological Reports, 69'', 1139–1146.</ref> Nonetheless, boredom proneness has been found to be as strongly correlated with attentional lapses as with depression.<ref>Carriere, J. S. A., Cheyne, J. A., & Smilek, D. (in press). Everyday Attention Lapses and Memory Failures: The Affective Consequences of Mindlessness. ''Consciousness and Cognition''.</ref>
Although boredom is often viewed as a trivial and mild irritant, proneness to boredom has been linked to a very diverse range of possible [[psychological]], physical, educational, and social problems.
==Philosophy==
'''Boredom''' is a condition characterized by [[perception]] of one's environment as dull, tedious, and lacking in [[stimulation]]. This can result from leisure and a lack of aesthetic interests. [[Labor]], however, and even [[art]] may be alienated and passive, or immersed in tedium (see [[Marx's theory of alienation]]). There is an inherent [[anxiety]] in boredom; people will expend considerable effort to prevent or remedy it, yet in many circumstances, it is accepted as suffering to be endured. Common passive ways to escape boredom are to sleep or to think creative thoughts ([[daydream]]). Typical active solutions consist in an intentional activity of some sort, often something new, as familiarity and [[repetition]] lead to the tedious.
Boredom also plays a role in [[existentialist]] thought. In contexts where one is confined, spatially or otherwise, boredom may be met with various religious activities, not because religion would want to associate itself with tedium, but rather, partly because boredom may be taken as the essential human condition, to which God, wisdom, or morality are the ultimate answers. Boredom is in fact taken in this sense by virtually all [[existentialist]] philosophers as well as by [[Schopenhauer]]. [[Heidegger]] wrote about boredom in two texts available in English, in the 1929/30 semester lecture course ''The Fundamental Concepts of Metaphysics'', and again in the essay ''What is Metaphysics?'' published in the same year. In the lecture, [[Heidegger]] included about 100 pages on boredom, probably the most extensive philosophical treatment ever of the subject. He focused on waiting at [[train station]]s in particular as a major context of boredom.<ref>Martin Heidegger. ''The Fundamental Concepts of Metaphysics'', pp. 78-164.</ref> In [[Kierkegaard]]'s remark in ''[[Either/Or]]'', that "patience cannot be depicted" visually, there is a sense that any immediate moment of life may be fundamentally tedious.
Without stimulus or focus, the individual is confronted with [[nothing]]ness, the meaninglessness of existence, and experiences existential [[anxiety]]. [[Heidegger]] states this idea nicely: "Profound boredom, drifting here and there in the abysses of our existence like a muffling fog, removes all things and men and oneself along with it into a remarkable indifference. This boredom reveals being as a whole."<ref>Martin Heidegger, ''What is Metaphysics?'' (1929)</ref>
[[Arthur Schopenhauer]] used the existence of boredom in an attempt to prove the [[vanity]] of human existence, stating, "...for if life, in the desire for which our essence and existence consists, possessed in itself a positive value and real content, there would be no such thing as boredom: mere existence would fulfil and satisfy us."<ref>Arthur Schopenhauer, Essays and Aphorisms, Penguin Classics, ISBN0140442278 (2004), p53 Full text available online: [http://books.google.co.uk/books?vid=ISBN0140442278&id=AZUe_0tOZIUC&pg=PP1&lpg=PP1&ots=e-esU4GaO5&dq=arthur+schopenhauer+books&sig=Jze2WQysljLWFYQKTr_Oh-UHsE0]</ref>
[[Erich Fromm]] and other similar thinkers of [[critical theory]] speak of bourgeois society in terms similar to boredom, and Fromm mentions sex and the automobile as fundamental outlets of postmodern boredom.
Above and beyond taste and character, the universal case of boredom consists in any instance of ''waiting'', as [[Heidegger]] noted, such as in line, for someone else to arrive or finish a task, or while one is travelling.
Boredom, however, may also increase as travel becomes more convenient, as the vehicle may become more like the windowless [[monad]] in [[Leibniz]]'s [[monadology]]. The automobile requires fast reflexes, making its operator busy and hence, perhaps for other reasons as well, making the ride more tedious despite being over sooner.
==Causes and effects==
Although it has not been widely studied, research on boredom suggests that boredom is a major factor impacting diverse areas of a person's life. People ranked low on a boredom-proneness scale were found to have better performance in a wide variety of aspects of their lives, including career, education, and autonomy.<ref>[http://www.questia.com/googleScholar.qst;jsessionid=H7GLJTDVBKSt7dKR5gntWp2j2XSCVGnJGhy4Gp2tfNVp1sl0kvQg!-1832283548?docId=76935098] John D. Watt, Stephen J. Vodanovich ''Boredom Proneness and Psychosocial Development'' Journal of Psychology, Vol. 133, (1999)</ref>
Boredom can be a symptom of [[clinical depression]]. Boredom can be a form of [[learned helplessness]], a phenomenon closely related to depression. Some philosophies of [[parenting]] propose that if children are raised in an environment devoid of [[stimuli]], and are not allowed or encouraged to interact with their environment, they will fail to develop the mental capacities to do so.
[[Image:Vasnetsov Nesmeyana.jpg|thumb|300px|right|The Unsmiling Tsarevna (Nesmeyana), by [[Viktor Vasnetsov]]]]
In a learning environment, a common cause of boredom is lack of understanding; for instance, if one is not following or connecting to the material in a class or lecture, it will usually seem boring. However, the opposite can also be true; something that is too easily understood, simple or transparent, can also be boring. Boredom is often inversely related to [[learning]], and in school it may be a sign that a student is not challenged enough, or too challenged. An activity that is predictable to the students is likely to bore them.<ref>[http://www.eric.ed.gov/ERICWebPortal/contentdelivery/servlet/ERICServlet?accno=ED397840] - R.V. Small et al. ''Dimensions of Interest and Boredom in Instructional Situations'', Proceedings of Selected Research and Development Presentations at the 1996 National Convention of the Association for Educational Communications and Technology (18th, Indianapolis, IN), (1996)</ref>
Boredom has been studied as being related to [[drug abuse]] among teens.<ref>[http://eric.ed.gov/ERICWebPortal/custom/portlets/recordDetails/detailmini.jsp?_nfpb=true&_&ERICExtSearch_SearchValue_0=EJ429375&ERICExtSearch_SearchType_0=no&accno=EJ429375 Abstract] Iso-Ahola, Seppo E.; Crowley, Edward D. ''Adolescent Substance Abuse and Leisure Boredom'', Journal of Leisure Research, v23 n3 p260-71 (1991)</ref>
Boredom has been proposed as a cause of [[pathological gambling]] behavior. A study found results consistent with the hypothesis that pathological gamblers seek stimulation to avoid states of boredom and depression.<ref>[http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=2236416&dopt=Citation] Blaszczynski A, McConaghy N, Frankova A. ''Boredom proneness in pathological gambling'' Psychol Rep. 1990 Aug; 67(1):35-42.</ref>
==Popular culture and the arts==
In Chapter 18 of the novel ''[[The Picture of Dorian Gray]]'' by [[Oscar Wilde]] (1854–1900) it is written; "The only horrible thing in the world is ennui, Dorian. That is the one sin for which there is no forgiveness".
[[John Sebastian]], [[Iggy Pop]], the [[Deftones]], [[Buzzcocks]], and [[Blink-182]] have all written songs with boredom mentioned in the title. Other songs about boredom and activities people turn to when bored include [[Green Day]]'s song "[[Longview (song)|Longview]]", [[System of a Down]]'s "[[Lonely Day]]", and [[Bloodhound Gang]]'s "[[Mope]]".
[[Douglas Adams]] depicted a robot named [[Marvin the Paranoid Android]] whose boredom appeared to be the defining trait of his existence in ''[[The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy]]''.
==See also==
*[[Apathy]]
*[[Dysthymia]]
*[[Motivation]]
==References==
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