passive -aggressive ... personality disorder or rational behaviour ?

by caliber 11 Replies latest jw friends

• 

  caliber

  How should we lay persons view this ?

  It's true that if you look under "passive-aggressive personality disorder" (PAPD) in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (the older editions--more about that below), you find the syndrome solemnly described as a "pervasive pattern of passive resistance to demands for adequate social and occupational performance." But once you delve into the history of the term, you realize that--at least in the eyes of its critics--it's mostly useful as a high-flown way to call someone a pain in the ass.

  Recognizing that the definition as then formulated wasn't working but uncertain how to fix it, the compilers of DSM-IV (1994) dumped PAPD from the list of official disorders and relegated it to an appendix. The most telling complaint, while avoiding confrontation. It's only pathological if it's a habitual, crippling response reflecting a pervasively pessimistic attitude--people who suffer from PAPD expect disappointment, and gain a sense of control over their lives by bringing it about. Some psychiatrists have suggested that PAPD be merged into a broader category, called negativistic personality disorder. Diagnostic criteria: passive-aggressive plus (a) mad at the world, (b) envious and resentful, (c) feels cheated by life, and (d) alternately hostile and clingy.

  The term "passive-aggressive" was introduced in a 1945 U.S. War Department technical bulletin, describing soldiers who weren't openly insubordinate but shirked duty through procrastination, willful incompetence, and so on. If you've ever served in the military during wartime, though, or for that matter read Catch-22, you realize that what the brass calls a personality disorder a grunt might call a rational strategy to avoid getting killed.

  This is an on-line opinion about passive-aggressive... what are your thoughts or reaction.. I personally agree that it is way too easy

  to label people !

  Cal
• 

  parakeet

  Someone who is passive-aggressive is someone who likes to covertly manipulate other people's thoughts and actions for his own purposes. Is it a personality disorder? a survival strategy? a sign that the person is a mean snake in the grass? I'm not a psychologist, so I don't know. All I know for sure is that I don't like it when such a person pulls that crap on me.

  BTW, why is this important to you, caliber?
• 

  fokyc

  Sounds very much like my wife's elders and it's a personality disorder, it is NOT rational behaviour.

  fokyc
• 

  caliber

  It's important to me whether or not it is disorder so a to dispel any notion for some of the points

  mentioned in the article I quoted... why for example would you try to overcome or curb a normal

  non-aggressive human reaction to a potential anger inducing situation.. ?

  Caliber
• 

  Gregor

  Whether or not it is officially recognized (i.e. would it be covered by insurance?) as a distinct disorder, I have no idea. But I am sure that when one knows someone who fits the behavior like a glove, "passive-aggressive" is valid short-hand to describe them. Especially a person who is always expecting the worst and subconsciously makes it happen. A person who does not trust being "happy".

  : passive-aggressive plus (a) mad at the world, (b) envious and resentful, (c) feels cheated by life, and (d) alternately hostile and clingy.
• 

  parakeet

  caliber: "why for example would you try to overcome or curb a normal non-aggressive human reaction to a potential anger inducing situation.. ?"

  I can only speculate that people who fear direct confrontation resort to p/a behavior to vent their anger in a way that will not produce a backlash. If there are situations that can possibly make this behavior beneficial, someone with more insight into human psyches that I have will need to respond.
• 

  caliber

  I can only speculate that people who fear direct confrontation resort to p/a behavior to vent their angerin a way that will not produce a backlash. If there are situations that can possibly make this behavior beneficial -- Parakeet

  OK if you're in already volatile group of out of work people.... you decide I'm going to throw a stone through the office widow..

  You could now be attested for inciting a mob action if things get out of hand. On the other hand if you ask if one alone could go in

  and address your concerns in words things may go different.. you could still be very angry inside but with the right words

  and tact you could avoid an outburst of anger and frustration and actually make some points that could be addressed.

  Yes it's still direct face to face approach but it doesn't have to be confrontational to the point of losing your cool !

  Direct venting of anger is an excellent way to lose your job ... do you need to vent your anger or keep your job

  and pay the bills ?

  Caliber
• 

  Scully

  One of my favorite examples of passive aggressive behaviour is the husband/boyfriend who begrudgingly agrees to do the laundry, but then throws a red sock in with her favorite white blouse and ruins it. His rationale is to do such a lousy job that the wife/girlfriend will never ask him to do it again. Of course, he denies that it was intentional... it was an "accident".

  There is method in the madness: he wants to get out of a chore that he dislikes, so he does something that sabotages her desire to have a clean white favorite blouse.

  Passive aggressive behaviour is simply behaviour. It's not an official personality disorder, according to the DSM-IV or DSM-V, however it points to someone who is dishonest about their anger and finds passive, non-confrontational and non-verbal ways to express it.
• 

  parakeet

  I thought of one situation where passive-aggressive behavior may be appropriate -- prisoners of war. As a prisoner, you can't openly display your anger or frustration; it might literally get you killed. P/A behavior would let prisoners vent their anger in a way that their captors could not easily define and punish.
• 

  Scully

  The only problem in a POW situation is that captors are not known for being rational when they dish out punishments. They are however quite literally aggressive-aggressive, and they make that position known from the start. If they can't figure out who did something of a passive aggressive nature, and nobody owns up to it, then everyone gets the $h!t kicked out of them.