Kick the Cat Effect
Version 1.0.0 · Updated 2026-07-30
CORE DEFINITION
Negative emotions and bad moods are passed down the social hierarchy chain (boss scolds manager, manager scolds employee, employee kicks the cat), spreading layer by layer.
SCAFFOLDING EFFECT
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The Kick the Cat Effect (also known as the kick the dog effect) is a metaphor describing how a person of higher rank in an organization or family may transfer their frustration or dissatisfaction by punishing someone of lower rank, and the lower-ranked person may similarly vent their frustration on someone even lower, creating a chain reaction. For example, a father is scolded by his boss at work, so he goes home and scolds his child; the child, upset, kicks the cat.
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Negative emotions are passed down the power or authority hierarchy, with the weakest becoming the scapegoat. The mechanism is stress transfer and 'displaced aggression': people tend to vent on safer targets.
MINIMUM ACTION
In progress 0/1Practice this model in one real situation:
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Source support: Explicit
- zh.wikipedia.orghttps://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E8%B8%A2%E7%8C%AB%E6%95%88%E5%BA%94verified
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