maladapted

Maladapted is an adjective used in biology, psychology, and related fields to describe a trait, behavior, or strategy that is poorly suited to a given environment or context. A maladapted feature fails to confer, or may reduce, the individual’s fitness, functioning, or survival compared with alternatives that fit the current conditions. Maladaptation arises when environmental conditions change faster than the organism or system can adapt, when a trait selected in one context becomes costly in another, or when an introduced species interacts differently with a new ecosystem. Examples span scales: in ecology, a plant that thrives in dry soil but is outcompeted after rainfall patterns shift; in evolution, traits that were advantageous in ancestral environments may produce costs under modern conditions; in medicine and psychology, habitual coping patterns such as avoidance can perpetuate anxiety or depression.

The term is sometimes used interchangeably with maladaptive, particularly in psychology, where maladapted behaviors are those that hinder learning, adjustment, or functioning. It emphasizes mismatch rather than moral fault. Maladaptation can be temporary, part of a transitional phase, or persistent, depending on ongoing environmental or social changes. Understanding maladapted traits or behaviors helps in fields ranging from conservation and evolutionary biology to clinical intervention and education, by identifying mismatches and guiding strategies to improve fit with current circumstances.