Acting Aggressively and Acting Assertively

Although most people maintain a steady behavioral course over time, everyone tends to act assertively or aggressively from time to time. Most authorities agree that assertiveness is more effective in helping people achieve their personal and professional goals, but in some cases, aggressiveness can actually be positive and constructive by compelling people to take action to improve, resolve a thorny issue or otherwise reconcile their differences. To gain some fresh insights into the distinctions between acting aggressively and acting assertively, this paper provides a review of the relevant peer-reviewed literature to define and contrast these terms and to describe a real-life situation in which they are used. A summary of the research and important findings are presented in the conclusion.

Review and Discussion

In contrast to aggressive behavior which is characterized as being "hostile and coercive," assertiveness is the "nonhostile, noncoercive tendency to behave with...
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