The Three Types Of Arrogance: Antagonistic, Comparative And Individual

Arrogance is a characteristic that destroys, but it also destroys itself. It produces a stagnation in emotional development and is typical of those who have had difficulties to establish the boundary between the external and internal world. There are several types of arrogance, but the common thing in all of them is the distorted vision of reality.

Another aspect common to all types of arrogance is that this characteristic generates a hostile distancing effect with others . The arrogant man can only exercise his excessive narcissism by belittling others and reality itself. Thus, we are talking about people who have significant difficulties in establishing intimate ties with others.

The common thing is that those who are arrogant end up being a victim of their self-deception, either because the distortion of reality leads them to make mistakes or because this defect is paid with loneliness and rejection by others. Next we will talk about the three most common types of arrogance and their consequences.

1. Antagonic, the first of the arrogance types

First, let’s clarify that arrogance is an attitude. The person handles a belief: he is superior to others. At the same time, he relies on her to think that he deserves more than others or that his contributions, as a rule, will have more value. Along the same lines, we can identify an excess of confidence that in many cases leads them to make mistakes and persist in them.

There are several types of arrogance. The most classic is antagonistic arrogance. As its name already anticipates, it is a type of arrogance in which behaviors are oriented to controversial  others, or to antagonize others, on the basis of denigrating them. It is sought that others remain below the arrogant.

It is the typical case of the “wise men”. People who do not allow room for doubt and who with little data make generalizations with a wide margin of error, ignoring this risk when they use them as if they were part of a reason or absolute truth. Or the “beautiful”, who exalt their physique as if it were the very paradigm of beauty. Or of those who feel morally superior to others, using their scale of values ​​to judge others.

2. Comparative arrogance

Comparative swagger is similar to the previous one, albeit a bit more understated. In fact, sometimes it is not expressed in an open way, but it is expressed in the plane of own thought. It has to do with the compulsion to compare oneself with others, always from a vertical point of view. The goal is to put others below themselves.

This is one of the most low-key types of arrogance. Those who adopt this attitude may not even enter into a debate with others. They listen, but do not listen to the arguments of others because they do not think that there can be something of value in them. They nod, but deep down they deny.

A classic example of this type of arrogance is the vertical boss who is convinced that there is nothing he can learn from his work team. Therefore, he does not even bother to consult the opinion of others, but assumes that his perception is better.

3. Individual arrogance

The third of the types of arrogance is the individual. We could say that it is the most naive form of arrogance and also, perhaps, the least malicious. Basically it is expressed on the level of language and its objective is to convince oneself, and others, that they have superior virtues or abilities.

What characterizes this type of arrogance is continuous self-exaltation. The person wants to believe that they have more virtues than others, that their works are better than those of others, or that their achievements are more transcendental than those of those around them. It is not uncommon for this type of arrogance to be accompanied by victimizing behaviors to support / justify the error or inferiority.

Individual arrogance is an attempt to magnify oneself, more for the difficulties of self-acceptance, than for the interest of harming others. Despite everything, like other types of arrogance, it ends up affecting others.

Many mistakes are made because of arrogance, whatever it is. Pride does not allow reality to be seen as it is. Therefore, a mistake is easily made that leads to undesirable consequences.

Although we all have something arrogant – sometimes it is a manifestation of self-love that is difficult to avoid – the important thing is to pacify the ego and not allow it to become a veil that turns against us and / or that of others.