self-reinforcing

adjective

self-re·​in·​forc·​ing

ˌself-ˌrē-ən-ˈfȯr-siŋ

 

: tending or serving to strengthen itself : reinforcing itself

According to this thinking, a self-reinforcing feedback loop—bigger brains, better tools, more food—drove forward the process of human evolution.

—Michael Rothschild

Just as many negative behaviors are self-reinforcing, we often view related positive behaviors as more trouble than they're worth.

—Colleen Dunn Bates

Word History

First Known Use

1884, in the meaning defined above