Responding to something with much more emotion or intensity than the situation actually deserves.
Prefix 'over-' (Old English, meaning excessively) + 'reaction' (from Latin 'reactio', meaning response). This psychological term became common in the 1900s.
Neuroscientists discovered that when you're stressed or tired, your amygdala (the brain's alarm system) becomes hyperactive, which literally makes you more prone to overreacting—it's not a character flaw, it's your brain's evolved survival instinct!
Weaponized against women's emotional expression; female anger/concern dismissed as 'overreaction' while male assertiveness treated as justified (Hochschild's emotional labor theory).
Describe specific behavior rather than dismissing emotion; avoid as shorthand for any woman's response to legitimate concern.
["disproportionate response","heightened reaction to [specific trigger]","stronger than the situation warranted"]
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