What is misokinesia?
Misokinesia is often described as the “visual counterpart” to misophonia. It involves strong emotional and physical reactions to certain visual triggers, especially repetitive or rhythmic movements. Common examples include leg shaking, hair twirling, finger tapping, and skin picking.
Research on misokinesia is still very limited. As of 2025, only two published research articles focus on misokinesia on its own, compared to the hundreds of studies on misophonia. Despite this gap, existing research shows a high rate of overlap between the two. Research suggests that experiences vary within the misophonia population: some people have primarily auditory triggers, some have primarily visual triggers, and many experience both (Jaswal et al., 2021).
Misophonia and misokinesia tend to involve similar reactions—such as irritation, anxiety, distress, or anger—but differ in what sets them off:
Misophonia is triggered by specific sounds.
Misokinesia is triggered by specific visual movements.
Right now, the boundary between the two is not well defined. The current consensus definition of misophonia includes visual triggers, even when those triggers are not clearly linked to sounds (Swedo et al., 2022). As a result, visual triggers may be discussed either under misophonia or under the term misokinesia, depending on the source. Because research has not clearly separated the conditions, misokinesia currently falls under the broader misophonia umbrella.
At the same time, visual triggers are rarely represented in how misophonia is discussed or depicted. Articles, research, and public imagery tend to focus on sound—headphones, hands over ears, audio-based explanations—while visual triggers are often left out. This gap in representation can make visual triggers seem rare, even though research and lived experience suggest otherwise.
Even though the word misokinesia is unfamiliar to many people, the experience itself is not unusual. Visual triggers appear to be a common part of the broader misophonia experience, not a fringe or separate offshoot. Until research draws clearer distinctions, keeping misokinesia visible within misophonia spaces helps people with visual triggers find resources and community.
