THE PHENOMENOLOGY OF FALSE TRANQUILLITY: DIGITAL CATATONIA

Abstract

This article examines the phenomenology of "false tranquillity" as a specific mode of inner exhaustion within the conditions of the digital environment. The study addresses the transformation of attention and corporeality that occurs under the influence of algorithmic determination, which replaces inner freedom of will with external control. The article analyses the concept of cognitive akinesia-a state that deforms intentions and thought under conditions of active yet externally captivated attention of the subject by digital stimuli, thereby producing an illusion of rest. On the basis of an analysis of phenomenological, existential, psychological, and neuropsychological approaches, it is demonstrated that "false tranquillity" emerges as a response to existential frustration and a deficit of meaning-in-life orientations. It manifests in the form of "digital catatonia," in which bodily immobilisation and a deficit of volitional regulation are masked by the aesthetics of recreational consumption. The relevance of the study is determined by the fact that the digital environment legitimises "biological stupor," transforming it into a socially acceptable model of "rest" that in fact deepens the subject's existential and cognitive exhaustion while remaining unrecognised by the subject itself. This is particularly significant under conditions of informational intensity and social uncertainty, in which the phenomenon of "false tranquillity" becomes a mass cultural phenomenon. The methodology of the study is grounded in an interdisciplinary synthesis of phenomenology, existential philosophy, psychology, and neuropsychology. A comparative analysis of the states of depression, burnout, existential vacuum, the " freeze‑response" response, and digital catatonia is employed. The obtained results make it possible to clearly distinguish "false tranquillity" from related states on the basis of the criterion of an illusion of subjective well-being in the presence of an actual cessation of restorative processes. The article introduces new concepts ("cognitive akinesia" and "digital catatonia") as tools for diagnosing digital exhaustion and for developing an "ethics of attention" and a return to bodily practices as means of overcoming existential frustration.