dou·ble bind 'dəb-əl-'bīnd n a psychological predicament in which a person receives from a single source conflicting messages that allow no appropriate response to be made
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a situation in which one person receives conflicting messages from another and in which response to either message, recognition of the conflict, or withdrawal is met with rejection or disapproval; thought to be a characteristic mode of interaction in some families of schizophrenics and in other dysfunctional families.Medical dictionary. 2011.