What is HETEROAGGRESSIVENESS? Examples and Components

Heteroaggressiveness refers to all those aggressive behaviors directed towards others. These can include different forms of manifestation: through physical, verbal, psychological behaviors... In this Psychology-Online article we will address the subject and mention some examples to better understand what heteroaggressiveness isand the components that form it.

Index

1. What is heteroaggressiveness? - Definition
2. Causes of heteroaggressiveness
3. Examples of heteroagesivity
4. Difference between aggressiveness, self-aggressiveness and hetero-aggressiveness
5. Components of heteroaggressiveness
6. Disorders associated with heteroaggressiveness

What does it mean heteroaggressiveness? Originally the concept arises from biology and is related to the sexual instinct and the sense of territoriality and refers specifically to any form of physical or verbal conduct intended to harm or destroy, regardless of whether it manifests as hostility or as a calculated means to an end. In short, a type of aggressiveness that refers to all aggressive behaviors characterized by targeting another person and manifested with variable intensity through different behaviors: physical, verbal, gestural ...

The genesis of heteroaggressiveness is multifactorial and includes neurobiological factors, psychological factors and socio-environmental factors. In addition, there are numerous studies that ensure that heteroaggressiveness is facilitated by various mental disorders: organic, psychotic, characteristic or affective. It directly affects the social and relational sphere of the person.

To better understand what heteroaggressiveness is, we can differentiate between two types or expressions of it:

• Verbal hetero-aggressiveness: that it would respond to all those reactions that trigger verbal threats, provocative language in the environment or changes in the tone of voice, for example.
• Physical heteroaggressiveness: in this case the emotion would trigger a serious state that causes physical damage to the environment. For example, kicking, shoving, slapping... The level of brutality varies.

There are guidelines, or rather helpful strategies to calm the most impulsive or brutal episodes of heteroaggressiveness since they can become dangerous both for the people of the social environment of the individual and for the subject same.

In summary, the aggressiveness it is a vital element of the behavior of any species as self-preservation. The main characteristic of aggressiveness is attacking another to cause harm. It is convenient to differentiate the concept of aggressiveness from aggression, since the second refers to the behavior itself. There are three types:

1. Normal aggressiveness: against a threatening situation, consistent with the nature of the threatening situation, there is when a certain degree of aggressiveness is necessary to deal with events in a assertive.
2. Aggression as an adaptive response: society sets the standard for what are acceptable targets, amounts and forms of aggressiveness.
3. Aggression as a non-adaptive response: the human species is the only one that presents intentional acts against other individuals of its own species. Is considered destructive violence that seeks to cause harm to other human beings.

In addition, aggressiveness has been classified in different studies according to dimensions such as: who is this aggressiveness directed at (towards oneself, an individual, collective ...), its expression (physical, verbal, impulsive ...), the type of damage it produces (physical, psychological), the frequency with which it occurs (punctually, repeatedly), the duration of its consequences (transitory, lasting) or the objective (affective, instrumental ...) In this article we are interested in differentiating between hetero-aggressiveness and self-aggressiveness:

• Heteroaggressiveness: refers to aggressiveness directed towards the environment, as we have explained previously.
• Self-aggressiveness: refers to a type of aggressiveness that is directed towards oneself.

Both are classifications that would go within the dimension to whom the aggressiveness is directed. Difference between self-aggressive and hetero-aggressive is who it is addressed to.

From a psychopathological point of view, heteroaggressiveness has the following components:

• Disturbing behavior
• Explosiveness
• Agitation

Disturbing behavior

Heteroaggressiveness implies the appearance of a series of behaviors that are disturbing to others. These behaviors usually appear in childhood and can be included within psychopathological disorders such as oppositional defiant disorder - markedly hostile, defiant, disobedient and provocative behavior - or the conduct disorder - A repetitive and persistent pattern that always seeks to break with social norms.

Explosiveness

This component is very important because on many occasions hetero-aggressive behavior tends to originate through a psychopathological condition known as intermittent explosive disorder -Loss of control, aggressive impulsivity. This explosive aggressiveness generates attacking verbal and physical behaviors that are part of episodes of lack of control that can mitigate themselves or need help.

Agitation

Agitation creates a hyperactivity picture motor accompanied by emotional disturbances such as anxiety, distress, or fear which can vary in intensity. These alterations can respond to a wide variety of physical and mental disorders as well as the consumption of substances, secondary reactions to medications, infections in part of the nervous system, disorders neurological ...

All of these components are largely related to a number of mental disorders and illnesses such as:

1. Schizophrenia.
2. Bipolar disorder.
3. The Depression.
4. Oppositional defiant disorder.
5. Conduct disorder.
6. Antisocial Personality Disorder.
7. Borderline personality disorder.

Even so, you do not necessarily have to suffer from any disorder or disease of this type to manifest episodes of heteroaggressiveness.

This article is merely informative, in Psychology-Online we do not have the power to make a diagnosis or recommend a treatment. We invite you to go to a psychologist to treat your particular case.

If you want to read more articles similar to What is heteroaggressiveness? Examples and components, we recommend that you enter our category of Social psychology.

• Anonymous. (2017). Psychopathology of aggressiveness. Unioviedo.Recovered from: https://www.unioviedo.es/psiquiatria/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/Agresividad.-Concepto-bases-y-psicopatolog%c3%ada.pdf
• Ortego, M. C. & López, S. & Álvarez, M. L. & Aparicio, M. M. (2011). Unit 4: Aggression.Psychosocial Sciences II, University of cantabria. Recovered from: https://ocw.unican.es/pluginfile.php/1575/course/section/2034/tema_04c.pdf