Different Types of Anger
Anger is a universal emotion. It’s common to all of us in one form or another from time to time. We all have bouts of frustrations, annoyances, and emotional explosions or outbursts which can result in anger.
Anger also shouldn’t be characterized as good or bad. It’s a natural emotion. Anger comes in many forms, however, and according to experts, there is no finite list of anger types.
However, there are several types of anger that are more prevalent. Those types are outlined below. Anger is not normally premeditated and it doesn’t indicate a deeper, more serious mental disorder.
The level of anger felt and expressed can range from passive to volatile. Meaning people can either implode or explode. Anger is not the problem it’s how anger is expressed that causes a problem.
Here are 7 Types of Anger
1. Chronic Anger
One of the least beneficial types of anger is the chronic type. This type is an ongoing, habitual frustration or resentment.
It often results in physical manifestations, such as flushing, extreme increased blood pressure, headaches, muscle tension, jaw-clenching, and sometimes even shaking. It’s a very powerful type of anger.
The triggers can be simple things that wouldn’t seem to set anyone else off. However, those with chronic anger issues jump first to anger before really assessing the circumstance.
Chronic anger isn’t always accompanied by fit-throwing, tantrum-style reactions. It’s more of a deep-seated, internal anger with outward physical manifestations.
Think of an earthquake; the plates are shifting and moving underground but the general public will only know it’s happening if the vibrations reach the surface.
2. Judgemental Anger
Judgemental anger isn’t to be confused with moral anger, which results when someone breaks a moral code of ethics. Judgemental anger is a sense of superiority over another persons shortcomings or behavior.
They feel better than everyone else and are hyper critical of others. The more they focus on other peoples short comings the more pissed off and revved up they feel. No one is good enough.
The Judger can’t seem to come to terms with their feeling of righteous fury which results from a perceived injustice. They sense injustice everywhere and seek it out.
This type of anger is often held inside and improperly addressed if it is addressed at all.
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What’s involved in a nutshell:
NLP To Reprogram
- Your thought processes so you can think clearly and find alternative ways to deal with situations.
- Emotional responses of anger so you can remain calm and have the ability to let go of anger easily and instead feel a sense of control.
- Your behavior so that you can react in a way that doesn’t ruin relationships or cause negative consequences.
- And I’m going to show you how to switch off your mind and stop overthinking things to deat
3. Self-Abusive Anger
Self-Abusive anger is when a person feels hopelessness, helplessness, unworthiness, and shame. Those feelings are a trigger for self-abusive anger.
It can manifest itself in negative self-talk, self-abuse, and substance abuse, or even lashing out at others. These actions are masking an internal battle and can be devastating.
Instead of spewing anger out like hot lava and then moving on, the self-abusive anger type has an endless negatively charged inner dialogue.
In a nutshell they implode and all the nasty, horrible things they can say or do are all directed within.
4. Assertive Anger
This type of anger is the most constructive type and usually produces a positive outcome.
Being assertive means listening to understand, being respectful of the other person and looking for a win/win solution.
Assertive also means you can stand up for yourself and use your voice. You want to be heard but at the same time you’re willing to listen to others. They use more persuasive communication and are more direct.
Being assertive is easier to do when you’re not feeling threatened or being verbally abused. Assertiveness is a powerful catalyst and is the goal for anger management and conflict resolution.
Read this related post: Assertive Anger Management
5. Passive-Aggressive Anger
Passive-aggressive anger is prevalent in people who avoid confronting their fears or frustrations. This type of anger is the inability to articulate to another person that they feel wronged, and why.
Passive-aggressive anger is expressed through the silent treatment where you show someone you are pissed off rather than telling them.
Anger is expressed through little digs and sarcasm or avoiding the other person altogether.
Often, the entire point of the conflict is overlooked or disregarded because of the passive-aggressive way which it was dealt with.
No one really knows what they are in conflict about because there was no dialogue.
6. Retaliation Anger
Nearly all of us have displayed this most common type of anger at one time or another. It’s quick to set in and it is our response to another person first lashing out their anger at us.
It’s the common immediate response we deliver when someone is angered with us, whether we are in the right or the wrong.
Sometimes the tongue works faster than the brain and logic disappears as anger-filled words are spit like venom.
7. Volatile Anger
As expected, this type of anger can be incredibly destructive to those around you. It seems to come out of nowhere as a result of annoyances both big and petty. It can make you feel powerful and bullet proof.
Once this type of anger is unleashed the end result is almost always a sense of calm.
However, while the angry person feels relief and release from their outburst the people on the receiving end of that anger feel threatened and fearful.
It’s easy to lose respect for a person with volatile anger because it shows a side of them that is not attractive. It also breeds distrust too.
Anger does not give us power. It doesn’t give us the love or respect we are after. It does the opposite. It drives people away, and makes people fear you, not respect you.
Conclusion on Types of Anger
Anger is a universal emotion and we all experience it. It presents itself in a whole range of styles, with only a few of them mentioned here.
Understanding that you have a choice in how you react is really important. When you realise that you are responsible for your own actions and for your own behaviour, you have all the power in the world to do something about it.
When you stop blaming other people and situations for making you feel angry and start to look within, you’ll realise you choose who can effect you and who can’t effect you.
You can realise that it’s up to you to choose the intensity of your feelings and it’s up to you to choose the outcome of the event.
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