What is the The Epistemic Psychosis™?

We often say we live in polarized times. But polarization assumes something important: that we still share the same reality and disagree about what to do with it. The more troubling possibility is something deeper—what I call The Epistemic Psychosis™.

Psychology uses the term psychosis to describe a condition in which reality testing breaks down, and individuals struggle to distinguish belief from external evidence. But what happens when the breakdown is not individual, but collective? What happens when societies themselves lose the ability to determine what is real, what is fabricated, and what is merely opinion dressed as fact?

We already know what it means to distrust governments, institutions, and leaders. Democratic systems were designed with that skepticism in mind. But The Epistemic Psychosis™ is different. It emerges when trust erodes not just in authority, but in reality itself—when facts become indistinguishable from narratives, when evidence can be simulated, and when people inhabit entirely different informational worlds.

In such a condition, the old Reagan-era safeguard—”trust, but verify”—becomes harder to practice. Verification presupposes reliable sources, stable evidence, and shared standards of truth. When those foundations weaken, verification itself becomes uncertain.

Preparing for this environment requires intellectual discipline. Seek out trustworthy sources of information, whether domestic or international. Build relationships with credible experts whose knowledge is grounded in evidence rather than popularity. And whenever possible, consult primary sources directly rather than relying solely on secondary interpretations.

Reality may still exist, but in an age of The Epistemic Psychosis™, maintaining contact with it may increasingly require deliberate effort.

Categorized in: The Epistemic Psychosis