no modern evidence supports the claim that acting bad is a cure for feeling bad. “Given the way the brain works, catharsis does not even make sense. We do not become less likely to [do] something by practicing it,” noted a 2013 study on the psychological effects of venting. Snorting a bunch of cocaine never made anyone want to snort less cocaine; shit-talking just encourages a person to shit-talk more, all the while making them look shady to whoever’s listening. Indeed, psychologists have established that when we disparage people behind their backs, something called “spontaneous trait
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