Fed Up With Online Negativity? ‘Joy Baiting’ Is The Viral Gen Z Trend You Didn’t Know You Needed

A new term has entered the internet lexicon, and it is exploding across social media. The term is “joy baiting.” A distinctly Gen Z slang, it has rapidly taken over online platforms and is being described as the positive counterpart to the much-discussed “rage baiting.”While rage baiting thrives on provoking anger and outrage, joy baiting does the exact opposite, it leaves people smiling.But What Does ‘Joy Baiting’ Mean?Joy baiting is a slang term that has now evolved into a full-fledged social media trend. It acts as the positive antithesis to rage baiting, where content creators deliberately begin interactions with a seemingly negative, tense, or critical setup, only to flip the narrative into something wholesome, heartwarming, or complimentary.The

goal is simple: to spread kindness, joy, and encouragement instead of conflict. These videos often feature public acts of praise or unexpected supportive messages that catch people off guard, in a good way.An Example to Understand It BetterImagine approaching someone and saying, “I don’t like your shirt.” The person naturally looks disappointed. But seconds later, you add, “I don’t like your shirt because I absolutely love it.”The sudden switch instantly changes the mood, leaving the person surprised and smiling.That’s joy baiting, laying the bait and ending it with joy. The element of unexpected positivity is what’s driving the trend’s massive virality.‘Cutest’ Viral Video Explains the TrendOne such video shared on Instagram by a user identified as Divya Fofani shows the creator approaching an elderly man on the street and saying, “This might be illegal, sir. I may have to call the police. What you’re doing might be illegal.”Visibly alarmed, the man asks, “What am I doing?”

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A post shared by Divya Fofani (@divyafofanii)

Moments later, the creator changes his tone and says, “Sir, you’re looking so good at this age, it should be illegal.”The man immediately bursts into laughter and smiles. Text overlaid on the video reads, “Joy baiting random people.” The creator then goes on to repeat similar interactions with others.Origin Still UnclearWhile the exact origin of the term remains unclear, some social media reports suggest it may have emerged on June 23, 2025, when TikToker @williwillcode shared a video describing a “new joy baiting method.” In the clip, he claimed to be coining the term “joy baiting” instead of “kind baiting,” which he had used in an earlier video, to describe the act of baiting someone into feeling joy. His idea involved checking in on friends who appeared sad.However, given how Gen Z slang typically spreads, the term may have surfaced organically across platforms before gaining a name.What’s certain is that “joy baiting” is gaining massive traction in 2026 and the year has only just begun.