Definition of maladaptive in English:
maladaptive
adjective ˌmaləˈdaptɪvˌmaləˈdaptiv
technical Not adjusting adequately or appropriately to the environment or situation.
maladaptive coping strategies such as increasing consumption of alcohol
Example sentencesExamples
- The cycle of success and the maladaptive cycle are one behavioral system
- Indeed, some traits are simply maladaptive, leading to costs for individual members of the species.
- This may affect their psychosocial stability, furthering firesetting tendencies and other maladaptive behaviors.
- They also describe ways of cultivating positive and agentic feelings and modifying maladaptive interpersonal patterns of expression.
- Therapists help identify these maladaptive behaviors and how to counteract them.
Derivatives
noun ˌmalədapˈteɪʃ(ə)nˈˌmælˌædəpˈteɪʃən
mass nountechnical Failure to adjust adequately or appropriately to the environment or situation.
examples of cultural maladaptation
Example sentencesExamples
- count noun maladaptations of the English language
- Despite her present weight of 25.4 kg and height of 136.5 cm, no psychosocial maladaptations have been reported.
- The manipulations of the malaria parasite are remarkable adaptations, but the appendix is, to a great extent, an maladaptation.
- Carl Zimmer links to a paper on maladaptation, and briefly discusses the deficiencies in the ‘design’ of the eye.
adjective ˌmaləˈdaptɪdˈˌmæləˈˌdæptəd
technical Inadequately or inappropriately adapted to the environment or situation.
Example sentencesExamples
- genes that are maladapted to the local environment
- The former says that we are maladapted to our social conditions - evolution hasn't caught up yet.
- The rising prevalence of obesity is a sign of just how maladapted we are to modern life.
- Prior weightings cannot determine current ones, since the former may be maladapted to the new situation.