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A catch-22 is a logical puzzle that traps someone regardless of their decision. It was coined in Joseph Heller’s novel Catch-22, where a character can’t get out of military service due to a paradoxical situation. Catch-22s can arise from rules and regulations, frustrating people who try to find exceptions. They are described as being “damned if they do, and damned if they don’t.”
A catch-22 is a logic puzzle in which someone is essentially trapped, regardless of the decision made. For example, many entrants to the job market find that you can’t get a job without experience, but if you don’t have experience, you can’t get a job. This is a classic example of a catch-22, because the job seeker is trapped in a circular logic paradigm with no way out.
The term was coined in 1961 by author Joseph Heller in the novel of the same name. In the novel Catch-22, one of the characters is trying to get out of service as a military pilot, and learns that with a letter from the flight surgeon stating that he is insane, he will be excused from the service. However, he has to approach the flight surgeon for the letter, and logic suggests that someone who is insane would not be aware of the fact, so by going to the surgeon, the character would prove that he was, in fact, sane. Whether or not he goes to the surgeon for a letter, his position as a pilot will not change.
Rules and regulations sometimes have catch-22s, intentional or otherwise. Many people who have battled bureaucracy have noted that some agencies, especially government agencies, seem to enjoy creating catch-22s. For example, you can’t get many forms of identification without a birth certificate, but in order to get a copy of your birth certificate, you often need some form of identification. A catch-22 may also arise in a set of standardized procedures, in which case it may not always be explicitly stated.
This logic trap has frustrated many people at some point in their lives, because it forces the victim to attempt to find an exception to catch-22 so they can defeat the logic trap. When a catch-22 is a bureaucratic problem, it can sometimes be helpful to befriend someone at an agency, as they may be able to help with the problem. Secretaries in particular can be custodians of valuable information and a little courtesy goes a long way for office staff.
You may also hear a catch-22 described as a situation where someone is “damned if they do, and damned if they don’t.” One could also think of this logical trap as something that traps someone between a rock and a hard place, because whatever decision is made, even if the decision is to do nothing, the outcome will be undesirable.
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