A concept in psychology, first described by psychologists Martin Seligman and Steven F. Maier as behavior conditioned by feelings of utter helplessness in the face of a daunting challenge, even when an opportunity readily exists, involving not much effort, to escape from the challenge that precipitates such feelings. In my classes, I define it simply as: giving up before trying because of intellectual laziness (itself a product, probably, of class-specific child rearing practices of the kind that would lead to failing the marshmallow test).