Looking for a phrase for when two people assume the same thing about one another resulting in a stalemate
I was discussing with a friend about a rather common situation that had occurred to them and I was wondering if there was a phrase or specific terminology used to describe it:
- Person A makes an assumption about Person B.
- Person B makes the same assumption about Person A.
- Both Person A and Person B decide to withhold mutually desired actions due to the assumption that they have both drawn about each other, resulting in a stalemate.
This is commonly seen when two individuals who like each other are unable to take the next step in the courtship process because they assume that one person does not wish to be with the other intimately.
My best effort:
Inaction due to mutual misunderstanding.
I'd like to make a case for the term communication breakdown here.
a lack of communication; a failure to exchange information
He blamed the mistake on a communication breakdown between two members of staff.
Reference:
https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/communication-breakdown