You’ve heard it a thousand times. Probably from a boss, a gym coach, or a self-help guru on Instagram. They lean in, look you in the eye, and drop that classic nugget: "The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results."
It’s catchy. It feels deep. It’s also completely wrong.
If you look up the definition of insanity in a medical textbook or a legal dictionary, you won't find anything about repeating habits. You’ll find complex discussions on psychosis, criminal responsibility, and cognitive impairment. The "repeating things" version isn't science. It's a cliché.
Yet, we cling to it. Why? Because it describes a specific type of human frustration we all feel when we're stuck in a loop. But if you actually want to understand what insanity is—from a clinical, legal, and historical perspective—you have to peel back the layers of pop psychology.
Where did this "definition" actually come from?
Most people swear Albert Einstein said it. He didn't. There’s zero evidence in his archives that he ever uttered those words. Others point to Benjamin Franklin. Wrong again.
The quote actually traces back to "Narcotics Anonymous" pamphlets in the early 1980s. It was a teaching tool for addiction recovery. It makes sense in that context. If you keep using the same substance and expect your life to magically improve, you’re trapped in a cycle of delusion. It’s a metaphor for the self-destructive nature of habit, not a psychiatric diagnosis.
Before the recovery movement, a similar line appeared in a 1983 novel by Rita Mae Brown titled Sudden Death. Since then, it’s become the go-to mantra for anyone trying to justify a pivot in business or a breakup in a toxic relationship.
The clinical reality of being "insane"
In the world of psychology, "insanity" isn't even a medical term. Doctors don't diagnose you with it. If you walk into a psychiatric ward, the staff are looking for symptoms of schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, or severe clinical depression.
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Psychosis is the word clinicians actually use.
Psychosis involves a break from reality. This might mean hallucinations—seeing or hearing things that aren't there—or delusions, which are fixed, false beliefs held despite evidence to the contrary. Someone experiencing psychosis isn't necessarily "doing the same thing over and over." They are perceiving a world that does not exist.
The American Psychiatric Association (APA) focuses on the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5-TR). You won’t find a entry for "insanity" there. It’s too broad. Too vague. Too loaded with historical baggage.
What the law says about the definition of insanity
While doctors ignore the word, lawyers love it.
In the United States legal system, insanity is a strictly legal concept. It’s used to determine "criminal responsibility." Can a person be held accountable for their actions if their mind wasn't functioning correctly at the time of the crime?
This is where the M’Naghten Rule comes in.
Originating in 1843 after Daniel M’Naghten attempted to assassinate the British Prime Minister, this rule set the standard for the "insanity defense." To be found legally insane, a defendant must prove that at the moment of the act, they were laboring under such a defect of reason that they did not know the nature and quality of the act they were doing, or if they did know it, they did not know what they were doing was wrong.
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Basically, it's the "Right-Wrong Test."
It is incredibly hard to prove. In fact, the insanity defense is raised in less than 1% of felony cases in the U.S., and it only succeeds in about a quarter of those. It’s not the "get out of jail free card" that movies make it out to be.
Some states use different benchmarks. The Model Penal Code test is a bit broader, looking at whether a defendant lacked "substantial capacity" to appreciate the criminality of their conduct. Then there’s the Irresistible Impulse test. This argues that even if you knew it was wrong, you literally couldn't stop yourself. Your brain's "brakes" were cut.
The psychology of the "Same Results" loop
If the popular definition isn't real insanity, what is it?
Psychologists call it perseveration.
It’s the uncontrollable repetition of a particular response, like a word, phrase, or gesture, despite the absence or cessation of a stimulus. You see it in people with traumatic brain injuries, autism, or ADHD.
On a more everyday level, it’s just bad habit formation. Our brains are wired for efficiency. We create "neural pathways." Once a path is worn into the grass of your mind, you’ll walk it every time without thinking. You aren't "insane" because you keep dating the same type of person or using the same failing strategy at work. You’re just operating on autopilot.
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Change requires "cognitive flexibility." That's the ability to switch between thinking about two different concepts or to think about multiple concepts simultaneously. When we lose that, we get stuck.
Why the cliché actually hurts us
Calling someone's repetitive mistakes "the definition of insanity" is kinda dismissive.
It oversimplifies the struggle of change. If you're trying to lose weight but keep eating processed sugar, you aren't insane. You’re likely dealing with a complex web of dopamine triggers, emotional coping mechanisms, and physiological cravings. Telling someone they are "insane" for struggling with a habit ignores the biological reality of how the brain works.
It also stigmatizes actual mental health conditions. By using "insanity" as a synonym for "stupid behavior," we muddy the waters for people dealing with genuine psychiatric crises.
Actionable steps for breaking the loop
If you feel like you're living out that fake definition—doing the same thing and hoping for a miracle—here is how to actually pivot.
- Audit the Variable: Change one tiny thing. If you’re a failing salesperson, don't just "try harder." Change your opening line. Or the time of day you call. Isolate the variable to see if the result shifts.
- External Perspectives: We are terrible judges of our own loops. Ask a friend or a mentor to watch you work or listen to how you talk. They’ll spot the repetition before you do.
- The 24-Hour Rule: Before repeating a failed tactic, force a 24-hour waiting period. This interrupts the "autopilot" neural pathway and forces the prefrontal cortex to engage.
- Check the Legal Standard: If you’re genuinely worried about your mental state, look at the "Right-Wrong Test" metaphorically. Do your actions align with your values? If not, it’s time for clinical help, not just a motivational quote.
Real change isn't about avoiding "insanity." It's about building the awareness to see the loop while you're standing in it. Stop quoting Einstein (who didn't say it anyway) and start looking at the data of your own life. Identify the pattern. Break the circuit. Move on.
That is the only way to get different results.