What does it mean when a person is considered passive aggresive?

skysmom65

Passive-aggressive behaviour refers to passive, sometimes obstructionist resistance to authoritative instructions in interpersonal or occupational situations. It can manifest itself as resentment, stubbornness, procrastination, sullenness, or intentional failure at doing requested tasks. For example, people who are passive-aggressive might take so long to get ready for a party they do not wish to attend that the party is nearly over by the time they arrive. Passive-aggressive personality disorder (also called negativistic personality disorder) is a controversial personality disorder said to be marked by a pervasive pattern of negative attitudes and passive resistance in interpersonal or occupational situations. There are certain behaviors that help identify passive-aggressive behavior. [2] Ambiguity Avoiding responsibility by claiming forgetfulness Blaming others Chronic lateness and forgetfulness Complaining Does not express hostility or anger openly Fear of competition Fear of dependency Fear of intimacy Fears authority Fosters chaos Intentional inefficiency Making excuses and lying Obstructionism Procrastination Resentment Resists suggestions from others Sarcasm Sullenness A passive-aggressive may not have all of these behaviours, and may have other non-passive-aggressive traits. http://www.answers.com/passive%20aggresive Jan 16 07, 9:40 PM

zbeckabee

Quote: "...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." http://www.straightdope.com/columns/030530.html Jan 16 07, 10:02 PM

star_gazer

Now that's a clear explanation zbeck! Jan 16 07, 10:13 PM