It is a form of cognitive distortion which generally gravitates towards the negative. This happens without any justifiable cause or reason and is not based on any fact.
It is like owning a crystal ball that only predicts misery.
Jumping to conclusions is a phenomenon where people reach a conclusion prematurely, on the basis of insufficient information. For example, a person jumping to conclusions might assume that someone they just met is angry at them, simply because that person wasn't smiling at them while they talked, even though there are many alternative explanations for that behavior.
Jumping to conclusions is a common phenomenon, where people prematurely decide and finalize something, without having sufficient information or choosing not to consider it.
Inference-observation confusion: An assumption made that may or may not be correct. Example: Concluding that a guy is rich, based on the car he drives.
Fortune-Telling: Assumption of knowing exactly what will happen in the future.
Mind Reading: Assuming based on how to have read someone's mind and concluded something which may not be true.
Extreme Extrapolation: Finding a minor clue and making something major out of it.
Overgeneralization: Copy-pasting a piece of knowledge over something that you think is related, but is not.
Labeling: Stereotyping a set of people based on their likes and dislikes.
The psychological term for jumping to conclusions is “inference-observation confusion”, which is when people make an inference but fail to label it as one.
Jumping to conclusions often comes from our desire to sound compassionate and invested in what someone is telling us.
We may comment by saying "wow", or "what a shame" when we really have no idea how the person wants us to feel. Instead of sounding supportive, we may come across as dismissive.
Mind reading. By watching the behaviour and nonverbal communication, we assume we know how someone feels, even when there are other potential explanations.
Fortune telling. We predict an outcome without having enough evidence. For example, we don't even try to enter a competition because we don't think we will win. These kinds of expectations can prevent us from taking action.
Labelling. We overgeneralise by labelling all the members of a group with the characteristics seen in a few.
At the core of cognitive behavioural theory is the idea that our thoughts can act as a block that prevents us seeing events or ourselves in a positive light. Instead, we distort reality and foster negative beliefs about our situation. However, once identified, these negative beliefs can be challenged.