Volatile resistive switching in correlated-electron systems, characterized by an abrupt resistance decrease under applied current, is crucial for developing next-generation electronics. Despite its technological significance, the underlying physics remains elusive. Inorganic thin films on substrates—the widely studied platform for resistive switching—usually exhibit broad temperature-induced metal-insulator transitions (MITs) and substantial heat dissipation. These factors complicate the nonlinear thermal effect induced by Joule heating, a key contributor to resistive switching, rendering it excessively complex and difficult to decipher. Here, we investigate a resistive-switched state in the bulk organic conductor $($$d7\text{−}\text{DMe}\text{−}\text{DCNQI}{)}_2\text{Cu}$, which undergoes an extremely sharp first-order MIT and exhibits weak heat dissipation, using resistance and ${}^1\mathrm{H}\text{−}\text{NMR}$ measurements. These extreme conditions make the Joule heating effect vivid, allowing us to observe peculiar phenomena, including temperature locking to the MIT and “inverse Ohm’s law”—an inverse proportionality between voltage and current. These findings provide fundamental insights into the nonlinear thermal effect in resistive switching, offering a pathway to efficient resistive switching technologies.

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• Dissipative dynamics
• Metal-insulator transition
• Resistive switching
• Nonequilibrium systems
• Organic compounds
• Strongly correlated systems
• Nuclear magnetic resonance
• Resistivity measurements