Complaining is a form of communication that expresses annoyance or unhappiness. It may serve a range of purposes, including connecting with others who feel similarly displeased, reinforcing a sense of self, or a cathartic expression of personal emotion. Complaining may be a method of notification, especially in the context of a consumer of goods or services, that one party has failed to satisfy normal standards, and is expected to rectify a perceived grievance, such as replacing a defective item.
Complaining may be formalized into an organizational system of filing a written
grievance
A grievance () is a wrong or hardship suffered, real or supposed, which forms legitimate grounds of complaint. In the past, the word meant the infliction or cause of hardship.
See also
* Complaint system
A complaint system (also known as a co ...
as part of a
dispute resolution process. Alternatively, it may be a purely informal process among friends or acquaintances that allows for the expression and validation of some personal perspective, often referred to as venting. There is some evidence to suggest that complaining may be harmful for physical or mental health by increasing stress levels.
The American
proverb
A proverb (from la, proverbium) is a simple and insightful, traditional saying that expresses a perceived truth based on common sense or experience. Proverbs are often metaphorical and use formulaic speech, formulaic language. A proverbial phra ...
, ''
the squeaky wheel gets the grease
''The squeaky wheel gets the grease'' is an American proverb or metaphor used to convey the idea that the most noticeable (or loudest) problems are the ones most likely to get attention. It is also expressed as "The squeaky wheel gets the oil". ...
'', is sometimes used to convey the idea that complaining about a problem is an effective means of spurring its resolution,
although it has also been noted that there is no necessary correlation between stridency and merit, so that the problem that gets resolved due to complaints may not actually be the most pressing problem requiring resolution.
See also
*
Complaint system
A complaint system (also known as a conflict management system, internal conflict management system, integrated conflict management system, or dispute resolution system) is a set of procedures used in organizations to address complaints and resolv ...
*
Consumer complaint
A consumer complaint or customer complaint is "an expression of dissatisfaction on a consumer's behalf to a responsible party" (London, 1980). It can also be described in a positive sense as a report from a consumer providing documentation about ...
*
Negativity bias
The negativity bias,Kanouse, D. E., & Hanson, L. (1972). Negativity in evaluations. In E. E. Jones, D. E. Kanouse, S. Valins, H. H. Kelley, R. E. Nisbett, & B. Weiner (Eds.), ''Attribution: Perceiving the causes of behavior.'' Morristown, NJ: Gene ...
References
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External links
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{{Socio-stub
Emotions
Human communication