Ghosting

Ghosting is a colloquial term for the practice of suddenly ending all communication with another person and avoiding contact without any apparent warning or explanation, while ignoring that person's subsequent attempts to communicate. With the rise of digital communication, ghosting is often used as an easy escape from confrontation or emotional discomfort, made easier by the anonymity and convenience of online platforms; the term originated in the early 2000s referring to dating and romantic relationships before expanding, over the following decade, to similar practices among friends, family members, employers and businesses. A person who ghosts another may have limited awareness of the effect on the other person, and ghosting is associated with negative mental health effects on its recipient, described by some mental health professionals as a passive-aggressive form of emotional abuse or cruelty.