I was discussing with a friend about a rather common situation that had occurred to them and I was wondering if there was a phrase or specific terminology used to describe it:
- Person A makes an assumption about Person B.
- Person B makes the same assumption about Person A.
- Both Person A and Person B decide to withhold mutually desired actions due to the assumption that they have both drawn about each other, resulting in a stalemate.
This is commonly seen when two individuals who like each other are unable to take the next step in the courtship process because they assume that one person does not wish to be with the other intimately.
My best effort:
Inaction due to mutual misunderstanding.
Best Answer
I'd like to make a case for the term communication breakdown here.
Reference:
https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/communication-breakdown