The phenomenon of “co-questioning” reflects a psychological state in which a person is so saturated with questions that the mind loses the ability to process meaningful answers.

Overloaded Minds: Navigating the Pitfall of Excessive Questioning

The phenomenon of “co-questioning” reflects a psychological state in which a person is so saturated with questions that the mind loses the ability to process meaningful answers. In this state—as explained in source link txt—a “clear answer” has already been received at the moment the mind becomes filled with information, and any further questions are perceived as superfluous—almost like water overflowing a sink that’s already full. In other words, when the mind is oversaturated, a person may ignore subsequent answers because their attention has already been dispersed by an overload of questions, leading to a situation where genuine communication degrades into a series of formalities.

Furthermore, source link txt also indicates that co-questioning can take on the character of empty, idle curiosity. This state is described as a manifestation of a soul that is not ready to be satisfied with a sincere and kind answer. A person in this state is more fixated on the act of asking questions rather than seeking meaningful answers. Thus, co-questioning can serve as an indicator of emotional and mental exhaustion, when dialogue degenerates into a meaningless exchange of questions without any pursuit of deep mutual understanding.

Supporting citation(s):
“At first, we all become very enthusiastic, overdo it, and end up spilling information over the edge. The mind of the questioner is already saturated. He has received a clear answer. The sink is full. Yet we continue to pour from the hose, pour, pour—so much so that it begins to flood the lower apartments. And we can’t or don’t want to stop. No, it must be like this: answer culturally, correctly, spiritually—and see, pray, so that the person truly is nourished by the word, but does not become oversaturated with it. The Apostle Paul distinguishes in his interlocutors a state that he calls the co-questioning of our time. Among youth, incidentally, it is not uncommon. That is, there is a tendency to ask questions, piling them one atop the other like blocks during a landslide. You haven’t finished answering before two more questions are asked. Sometimes, it seems as though the person is not interested in the answer to any of their questions. They are interested only in the questions themselves; neither the questions nor the answers matter to them, only you—as a human being, not as a spiritual individual.” (source: link txt)

“Co-questioning sometimes implies empty, idle curiosity—the desire to ‘scratch the ear,’ so to speak, as the Apostle Paul puts it; co-questioning exposes the hardened state of a soul that is not ready to be satisfied with even the most sincere and kind answer. Of course, such a depraved state of the soul reveals—or rather, indicates—the redundancy of dialogue and the necessity of ending it, so that neither you nor your distant interlocutor face further reproach. And yet, I wish to conclude with the same thought with which we began. It may seem that only negative traits accumulate in the mix. But that is far from the case. By the same psychological mechanism, positive social instincts may also be awakened here—traits that everyone values, such as self-sacrifice and responsiveness. In everyday situations, their manifestation can be hindered by a sense of self-preservation or prudence.” (source: link txt)