What is ‘negging’? A not-so-healthy form of flirting
After an episode of the British reality series ‘Love Island’, the term came to the fore recently. Chances are you’ve seen it happen or experienced it yourself. Negation is a form of emotional manipulation. The target? Affect your self-confidence so that you would respond more quickly to advances.
The internet is currently venting its frustrations after Danny Bibby blatantly ‘negging’ in ‘Love Island’. Negging is short for ‘negative remark’, so a negative comment.
The term didn’t immediately ring a bell with us, so we turned to Urban Dictionary. “Negging is a way to pick up girls. It’s a negative comment packaged as a compliment to trigger a woman’s insecurity. The purpose of the ‘neg’ is to intrigue and confuse a woman at the same time. This is to shake her confidence just enough that she will respond to your advances.”
Emotional manipulation technique
The term is currently going viral after an episode of Love Island. In it, Danny Bibby, a plumber from the UK, explained to his date Lucinda Stafford why their relationship, ahem, isn’t really working. “I’m not the type to chase you like a small dog. I’d rather knock you down a few times and tease you.”
Charming, but it didn’t stop there. “You’re like a matte black Lamborghini I’d love to drive, but when I put the key in it, it just doesn’t work. I’ve already replaced a few parts, but it still won’t work. He is still in the garage.”
The internet was furious after the broadcast. “‘Knock you down a couple of pegs?! Danny just freely admitting to negging?” someone wrote on Twitter.
He literally compares her to a broken-down car: “He called her a broken car omg, and she’s giggling?” asks another concerned Twitter user.
“Negging” can sometimes be so subtle that you don’t even realize you’re a victim of it. So keep your ears open if you receive a ‘compliment’ that doesn’t really leave you with such a good feeling.
The game has now ended for Danny: Love Island received more than 1,500 complaints after the episode in question, after which it was decided that he had to leave the house.
