Psychological pressure and how to resist it. Psychological pressure on a person Examples of psychological pressure

When we hear the word "violence", we first of all imagine an aggressive person using force on a weaker one. However, violence can manifest itself not only in the form of physical aggression, but also in the form of psychological pressure and coercion. And many psychologists are sure that emotional and verbal violence is much more dangerous for a person than physical, since it does not cripple the body, but the psyche and. A person who is regularly subjected to psychological violence gradually loses confidence in himself and his "I" and begins to live with the desires and attitudes of the aggressor, making efforts to achieve his goals.

Signs and types of psychological abuse

Psychological violence, unlike physical violence, is not always obvious, since it can manifest itself not only in the form of screaming, swearing and insults, but also in the form of subtle manipulation of a person’s emotions and feelings. In most cases, the goal of the one who uses psychological violence is to force the victim to change their behavior, opinion, decision and act as the aggressor-manipulator wants. However, it should be noted that there is a separate category of people who use psychological violence and pressure in order to morally break the victim and make her completely dependent on their will. To achieve their goal, the aggressors use the following types of psychological violence:

Protection from psychological abuse

Psychological pressure is easiest for people who do not have strong personal boundaries and do not know how to defend their own rights. Therefore, in order to protect yourself from psychological violence, you must first of all, designating for yourself your rights and obligations in each of the spheres of life. Next, you need to act according to the situation, depending on what type of psychological violence the aggressor uses.

Opposition to the lover to command

When faced with a commanding and ordering person, two questions need to be asked: “Am I obligated to follow this person’s orders?” and "What happens if I don't do what he wants?" If the answers to these questions are “No” and “Nothing bad for me,” then the self-proclaimed commander should be put in his place with something like this: “Why are you telling me what to do? It is not my duty to carry out your orders." Further orders and commands should simply be ignored.

Practical example: Employees A and B work in the same office in the same positions. Employee A regularly transfers part of his duties to employee B, without providing any counter services in return. In this case, the opposition to the aggressor will look like this:

A: You are just printing out something, well, print out my report, and then put it in a folder and take it to the accounting department.

B: Do I work here as your secretary? It is not my job to print your documents and deliver them anywhere. I've got a lot of work to do, so take care of your report yourself and don't distract me, please.

Protection from verbal aggression

The goal is to make the victim embarrassed, upset, stressed, start making excuses, etc. Therefore, the best defense against verbal aggression is not to live up to the aggressor's expectations and react in a completely different way from what he expects: to joke, remain indifferent or feel sorry for the offender. Also, an effective way to protect against such psychological violence is the method of "psychological aikido" developed by the famous psychologist M. Litvak. The essence of this method is to apply depreciation in any conflict situations - smoothing out the conflict by agreeing with all the statements of the aggressor (as a psychiatrist agrees with everything that the patient tells him).

Practical example: The husband calls names and tries to humiliate his wife every time he is in a bad mood. Protection from psychological abuse in this case may be as follows:

M: You don't know anything at all! You are a disgusting hostess, you can’t even clean the house properly, there’s a feather lying around under the sofa!

Zh: Yes, I'm so clumsy, it's so hard for you with me! Surely you know how to clean better than me, so I will be grateful if you help me clean the house next time.

Confronting Ignorance

It is important to remember that intentional ignoring is always manipulation, so you should not give in to the pressure of the manipulator and try to appease him so that he changes his anger into mercy. A person who is inclined to be constantly offended and “turn on the ignore” in response to any actions that do not suit him, needs to be made clear that playing silent is his right, but he will not achieve anything with his behavior.

Practical example: Two sisters live in the same apartment separately from their parents. The younger sister (M) has been used to manipulating her older sister (C) since childhood. In cases where M does not like something, she begins to deliberately ignore C and triple her boycott. Countering psychological pressure in such cases is as follows:

S: I'm leaving in a week for a business trip for two months.

S: This business trip is important for my career. And nothing will happen to you in these two months. You are not a small child - you will find something to entertain yourself with.

M: Does that mean? Then you're not my sister anymore and I'm not talking to you!

Confronting the psychological pressure of duty or guilt

Strong personal boundaries are a reliable defense against the pressure of feelings of guilt and duty. Knowing the boundaries of his rights and duties, a person can always determine what is not included in his duties. And if a person notices that his boundaries are being violated, he should directly inform the aggressor about the limits of his responsibility and duties and make it clear that the manipulation has failed.

Practical example: A single mother (M) is trying to forbid her adult daughter from leaving to work in another city, putting pressure on her sense of duty. The response in this case could be:

M: How can you leave me alone? I raised you, raised you, and now you want to leave? Children should be a support for parents in old age, and you are leaving me!

D: I'm not leaving you - I'll call you, come to visit and help you with money. Or do you want me to lose the opportunity to get a high-paying job and not be able to fulfill my dreams?

M: What are you talking about? Of course, I want the best for you, but I will feel bad without you!

D: Mom, you are an adult, and I believe that you can find many interesting activities for yourself. I promise that I will call you regularly and visit you often.

Confronting bullying

Hearing from a friend, relative or colleague phrases with the meaning "if you do not do something, then misfortune will happen in your life" or "if you do not change your behavior, then I will do something bad for you", you need to ask yourself a question whether the threat is real. In the case where intimidation or threats have no real basis, the blackmailer can be invited to bring his threat to life right now. If your life, health or well-being and you are sure that he can fulfill the threat, then it is best to record his words on a voice recorder or video camera and then contact the police.

Practical example: Employee A has not fulfilled his part of the project and is trying to intimidate employee B to do his job. To resist pressure in such cases, you can do this:

A: Why are you going to leave if the work on the project is not finished yet? If we don't finish today, your boss will fire you. Do you want to be unemployed?

B: I have done my part of the work. I don't think I'll get fired for not doing your job.

A: The boss doesn't care who does what. He wants a result. So help me if you don't want to be kicked out.

Q: Do you think? Why wait until tomorrow? Let's go to the boss right now and ask him to fire me for refusing to do your part of the job.

Many people are aware that psychological violence is used against them, but they do not dare to fight back for fear of spoiling relations with someone who likes to command, manipulate or insult. In such cases, you need to decide for yourself what exactly such relationships are valuable for and whether it is better not to communicate with an aggressive person at all than to regularly endure his insults and act to your detriment, succumbing to his blackmail and manipulation.

Do you feel that psychological pressure is often put on you? If you are a calm and confident person, then you will probably want to answer: "No." But in vain!

Methods of influence can be completely different, and often the “victim” does not even understand that she has just been pressured. But it has a huge impact on your life! If you do not want to fall into this trap anymore, read our article and use the knowledge for psychological self-defense.

Types of psychological pressure

Psychological pressure is the influence on other people, carried out in order to change their psychological attitudes, opinions, judgments and decisions. It may seem that only strong and result-oriented people resort to it, but this is not so. A confident person will act directly and openly, and not look for workarounds, causing inconvenience to others. There are many types of psychological pressure that you probably have to deal with in life:

1. Coercion is a direct, undisguised influence on another person. It is resorted to only when there is some kind of force, otherwise no one will succumb. Examples of such power can be physical qualities, power, money, information. A person who is being coerced into something is aware of the process taking place - as opposed to being manipulated. You can try to protect yourself from him by hinting to the "presser" that he is acting aggressively - some people do not like to admit this. However, if this does not bother a person, then it is very difficult to resist this type of pressure.
2. Humiliation. Another type of psychological pressure, expressed in the desire of the aggressor to morally "crush the victim." In this situation, you can hear a lot of unpleasant things about yourself: you are stupid, scary, clumsy, mediocre, disorganized, etc. … Being in a state of psychological prostration, you lose control over the situation, and at this moment it is very convenient to put pressure on you: “At least you can do this?”. The idea is that if you were sober, you would never agree, but this is where personal defense mechanisms and the desire to prove your own worth come into play. By the way, this technique works solely due to self-doubt.
3. Leaving aside. This kind of psychological pressure stands apart from all others, since its essence lies in trying to starve you out. Simply put, when they try to put pressure on you, and you want to clarify this, the person begins to slip into extraneous topics or even goes into “deep defense”: “Well, what are you, huh?”. Or asks why you keep talking nasty things about him. In this case, it is necessary to track the moment of leaving each time and return to the starting point: “No, we will deal with me later, now we are talking about you.” If you are persistent, then there is a chance that the aggressor will lag behind you with his pressure.
4. Suggestion is a kind of psychological influence on a person, after which he begins to uncritically “swallow” information imposed on him from the outside. The person using this method must be an authority for his victim, otherwise the trick will not work. An extreme version of suggestion is hypnosis, but it can also be used in the waking state. For this, as a rule, games with voice, intonation and other semi-conscious moments are used. Paradoxically, there are people who are not suggestible at all, and you are lucky if you are one of them.
5. Belief. The most rational kind of psychological pressure. It appeals to reason and human logic. That is why only people with a normal level of intelligence and development of thinking are subject to him - the rest simply will not understand what they are being told about here. Speech, which includes beliefs, is usually as logical, consistent and conclusive as possible - as soon as the consciousness of the victim catches the slightest inconsistencies, the whole structure immediately collapses.

How to resist psychological pressure

Oddly enough, it is much easier to resist psychological pressure than to exert it. The first step is to recognize that you are being manipulated. You can see in the partner's behavior signs of the methods of influence described above. Persistently drawing your attention to some aspects of the problem and ignoring others should also alert you - as well as generous promises that cause reasonable doubt. In your state, during manipulation, inexplicable sympathy for a partner, sharp fluctuations in feelings, feelings of lack of time, guilt, obligation may appear - all these things should be a signal that you are being manipulated.

Next, you should inform the interlocutor that he is "brought to clean water." You may question the appropriateness of the actions and decisions that he requires of you. Then offer your own interaction option, which, first of all, will suit you.

Naturally, the manipulator will resist. In this case, it is useful to ask questions aimed at clarifying the situation: what does he mean when he talks about the problem, what objective conditions and restrictions are in place, what should be done to improve the situation, etc. ... Specify why the manipulator chose you and right now - all this allows you to track what the aggressor prefers to “pressure”.

Well, the most useful thing is the banal "think". As already mentioned above, the main task of the manipulator is to activate feelings, emotions, irrational attitudes, because they contribute to the belief in the words of the aggressor. However, as soon as you get out of the state of pliability and soberly analyze the situation, everything changes dramatically. The urgency in resolving the issue disappears, and you no longer feel any particular guilt for yourself. Therefore, as soon as it seems to you that you are being manipulated, start thinking hard. And always take time to reflect - it is this that helps you to step outside the situation and look at it objectively.

In the modern world, it is very important to be able to deal with psychological pressure. We have practically abandoned weapons and the use of physical force, respectively, the enemies are left with only such methods of influence. And in order to live happily, you need to be able to recognize them and protect yourself and your loved ones from such gross psychological interference.

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Have you ever quarreled with your loved one? Have you ever had to do something after such a quarrel that you later regretted? Do you know the situation when you thought about some idea for a long time, in order to then voice it, for example, to your boss at work, but after a conversation with him, you left the office squeezed like a lemon, and even with the need to lead a completely different project? Have you ever had to make unnecessary promises or make ridiculous commitments while communicating with someone?

If you answered yes to at least one of the proposed questions, then you have experienced from your own experience that this is psychological pressure. Unfortunately, communication with people around us, including even those closest to us, is not always free from manipulation and attempts to influence us. Knowing how to resist psychological pressure is not at all a whim and not pumping your skills, but a real life necessity.

Types of psychological pressure

Before we talk about what are the ways to protect against psychological attacks, it makes sense to briefly recall the most common forms of such attacks. Let's present them in ascending order of negative potential.

Rhetorical questions

One of the most common forms of psychological pressure is asking rhetorical questions. For example, you may be asked: “Well, why are you so worthless?”, “Do you even understand what you are doing?” or "Do you understand what you just did?" and so on. Trying to answer such questions does not make much sense, as well as ignoring them, because by doing so you either admit that you are wrong (it is quite likely that this is not the case at all), or show disrespect to the interlocutor.

To fend off such a psychological attack, you can continue the question and give some kind of positive answer, for example: “Yes, I understand what I did, and I did it because ...” Thus, in a number of situations, you can solve the problem, even with the help of a lively , but quite a constructive argument. Despite this, if you do not know how to resist psychological pressure, most likely, you will only aggravate the situation.

Guilt

In any communicative situation, it is important to understand that everyone has their own truth, and the line between truth and lies can be fuzzy. The same events are often perceived differently by different people. And on this "trick" many manipulators build their psychological attacks, putting pressure on the interlocutor. This is a very clever technique, and with people who do not have psychological defense techniques, it works flawlessly.

In order to counter this technique, it is useful to start by playing along with the manipulator so that his pressure does not increase. Further, you should not take on any unnecessary obligations or promise something that you are not going to keep. There is also a more radical method - just answer the person with a refusal. Although these methods do not always work. Manipulators know this, and using guilt is one of the most powerful techniques in their arsenal.

Massive attack

This technique is typical for people who put psychological pressure on a person who has all the powers not to do what they want from him. Often found in business and at work. The technique consists in the fact that the addressee of the manipulation begins to be attacked from all sides by various methods by people interested in resolving the situation in their favor.

For example, if a representative of the “weak” side does not want to sign a contract during the negotiations, the “strong” side begins to put pressure on him. This can be expressed in endless calls, constant visits of representatives to the office of the victim of attacks, huge amounts of emails, etc. The bottom line is that a person cannot withstand such psychological pressure and simply gives up under the onslaught of an opponent.

And here are a few more methods of psychological pressure of this kind:

• a massive attack on the client is carried out;
• in organizations, there is a massive attack on managers (for example, to increase salaries) or ordinary employees (for example, to dismiss);
• in the activities of collection agencies, a massive attack on debtors is carried out, etc.

A skillful psychological attack can unsettle even a persistent and strong person, not to mention those who are not ready for such aggression against themselves. There are two best ways to protect yourself from it:

• the victim talks separately with each member of the "campaign" against himself and explains his position;
• the victim enters into negotiations with the main opponent and resolves all issues with him.

The adoption of such measures is quite effective, but still does not give an absolute guarantee of victory over the manipulator.

direct threat

This method of psychological pressure is not distinguished by the need for a special intelligence in the aggressor, but is very effective. When someone openly threatens the interests of a person, especially what is very important and valuable for him, it is extremely difficult for him to refuse. But even here there is one BUT: far from always a threatening person is able to realize his threats. However, the point is not even whether this will happen or not, but in the very impact on the psyche.

Often, direct threats should be considered as an indicator that they want to negotiate with you, and for a manipulator you are a fairly serious opponent. But even here it must be remembered that if a person were capable of some kind of decisive action, he would not threaten, but immediately began to act. So a good way to behave in the presence of a direct threat is to follow the initially chosen plan. (Here we recall that we are talking about communication situations that do not concern such things as a threat to health or life. In these cases, you need to use other methods, including methods).

These are the most common methods of psychological pressure. As you noticed, describing them, we also indicated the simplest ways to deal with them. But not always and not all people can always be calm, control the course of communication and analyze what is happening. Often emotions take over, and then you have to forget about composure. It is precisely at such moments that it is necessary to apply methods of protection against psychological aggression.

Below we will introduce you to several such methods, so after reading the article, your defensive arsenal will be replenished with new types of “weapons”. However, before moving on to these methods, watch a short video.

5 Simple Tricks to Protect Against Psychological Pressure

The described techniques are very simple to use, and anyone can master them. By and large, many of us unconsciously already use them, but the maximum effect can still be obtained if two conditions are met: understand that you are using a specific technique, and understand what you are using it for. At first glance, these are small things, but in reality they are of great importance.

So, here are these five simple tricks:

1. To reduce psychological pressure in the process of communication, place objects between you and the interlocutor. These can be chairs, a table, some interior elements. Even small things, such as putting an ashtray on the table or holding a cup of coffee to your mouth, can reduce your susceptibility to the psychological onslaught of the interlocutor.
2. If you notice that someone is exerting psychological pressure, take it. Crossing your legs, crossing your arms, lowering your head and looking down from under your brows, you protect your vital organs and energy points. Such poses are not just called closed, because they really close a person for the perception of other people's signals.
3. In addition to real barriers between yourself and the interlocutor, you can create mental barriers. Choose what seems to you the most powerful protection: a wall of water, ice or fire, a glass jar or a cloud of gray smoke, a force field or even a space suit. Remember how in childhood, when playing, we said: "I'm in the house"? This is also not without reason, because thoughts have the ability to influence our perception.
4. When someone is pushing you at home or at work, divert their attention. To do this, you can choose anything that will not allow the interlocutor to concentrate. Take a glass of water in your hands and start watering the flowers, turn on the water, open a magazine on a page with a girl in a swimsuit ... You can do something that knocks down the interlocutor: if you are a man, cough, or hit your palm with your fist; if you are a woman, effectively cross your legs or bend down beautifully behind an allegedly fallen hairpin, etc. To reduce the strength of the psychological impact of a partner, any distraction is effective. The main thing is that it looks natural, and also does not repeat too often.
5. If you have, defense against psychological attack can be turned into a fun game. To do this, mentally remove the interlocutor from the image in which he currently appears. Introduce an important and pompous interlocutor as a court jester; a scarecrow stuffed with hay; a naked baby doll that jumped out of the bath; clumsy penguin, etc. The most important thing is to choose an absolutely ridiculous image, thanks to which any psychological pressure will be minimized.

Agree that it will not be difficult to become skilled in these techniques? We think that you will cope with this task successfully. But do not rush to close the page and run towards the manipulators. Next, we will reveal a few more useful tricks.

Effective fight against psychological pressure: algorithm of actions

Anyone who has had to deal with psychological pressure at work, in the company of friends, relatives or not very familiar people, knows that as soon as you relax and get confused, you suddenly begin to behave like an unreasonable child. Someone immediately begins to defend himself, someone hides his head in the sand, and someone succumbs to the influence of the manipulator and does what he is told. What response to such stress will be adequate and optimal?

The very first thing you need to do (and learn how to do) is to calmly perceive the incoming flow of information, stop emotional perception and begin to study the situation. Ideally, this should be done in one step and take a meager amount of time. And things like:

• start breathing deeply and focus on breathing;
• start slowly counting to ten (can be done together with breathing);
• begin to carefully consider the interlocutor (here you need to pay attention to his appearance and behavior in order to find something that characterizes him as a person).

But psychologists advise a more interesting way: start to notice how the state of your partner changes in the process of communication. For example, catch where he is looking and how his eyes run; correlate his facial expressions and gestures with the content of the words. Some people look away when you start watching them closely, others become nervous, start fingering, fiddling with the tip of their jacket or clicking a pen, etc. By such manifestations, one can more or less accurately determine the true intentions and motives of the interlocutor, as well as understand what state he is in.

So: at the moment when you manage to become a "researcher", i.e. start to study the situation, you can begin to find out exactly what kind of influence the psychological aggressor is trying to have on you. And if you make sure that a person is exerting psychological pressure, do not hesitate and start defending yourself competently and professionally using the algorithm presented below.

Step 1 - ask questions

The purpose of asking questions is to gain time to think about the situation in general and your behavior in particular. You can directly ask your interlocutor if you can disagree with him in what he says to you. If he answers you yes, you can simply point it out and give him a negative answer to his request. If you feel that there is some kind of dependence in your relationship, find out what the consequences may be if you refuse.

The main condition is to clearly see the relationship between the words and actions of the interlocutor and your reactions. It often happens that the manipulator hides his manipulations, as a result of which he does not want to be exposed, so direct questions can make him retreat. This is especially true in situations where other people are present.

In the case when the relationship between your actions and the actions of your opponent is clearly visible from the very beginning, questions will help you get some time to think about your future behavior. Clarifying questions, such as:

• Why did you decide that I don't want to take responsibility?
• Why do you think I'm responsible for this?
• What exactly should I be responsible for?
• What makes you think I'm scared?
• What do you think I should be afraid of?
• Do you think that I have no right to refuse? Why?
• Are you sure what you're saying? Why?
• Why do you think so?

The main task when asking questions will be to find out the reasons why the interlocutor is in a winning position. Once you have time, move on to the next step.

Step 2 - Determine Your Opponent's Advantage

At the second stage, you need to understand how the aggressor exerts psychological pressure, how he plans to influence you. By understanding this, you will get a chance to organize a more powerful defense. Perhaps the opponent thinks he can influence you by raising his voice or shouting. In this case, you do not need to succumb to pressure. You just have to wait until the fuse of the aggressor weakens, and after that express your point of view.

It is possible that the manipulator will try to put pressure on you with the help of third parties present nearby. If so, then there is no need to lower your head. Pay attention to other people's reactions. You can even feel free to start looking at them. The mere fact that you are non-verbally addressing those present will make them give you some kind of feedback. The unanimity of third parties is very rare, so one of them may take your point of view. Yes, and the banal silence of others can be used to your advantage.

Remember that you cannot be psychologically broken, so you need to object slowly and calmly. Any tricks of the aggressor can be called into question or weakened if you are careful. When, for example, the interlocutor refers to some kind of authority, you can indicate that this technique is not suitable for the current situation. And if, for example, the aggressor points to his experience or age, you need to find arguments based on your experience and age.

If you want to keep the prospect of cooperation, you do not need to discount the opponent's arguments. It is better to somehow limit their applicability, using objective considerations for this. Here a person says that you have been communicating for a long time and helped him before, and that now he is again waiting for help. Relationships should not be underestimated. It is much more effective to point out the real reasons why you cannot help at the moment.

When the aggressor uses rush communication against you (at an increased pace), you need to come up with a way to stop him. You can say that you need to urgently call, go to the bathroom, send an email, etc. Any adequate pretext will help you reduce the pressure of your opponent, take a break and, knowing what the interlocutor is counting on, putting pressure on you, find your own method of pressure.

Step 3 - Determine Your Benefits

What can you use to help yourself? There are many options: support from third parties, reference to past positive experience, own merits, functions performed, authority, etc. But it’s better not to use reciprocal pressure, especially if the relationship with the manipulator is important to you for some reason.

It is best to build your arguments so that both you and the aggressor clearly understand the connection between your judgments. And if you offer your own solution to the problem, it is more competent to make it so that it is a compromise, i.e. suited both you and your communication partner.

Remember that your responses should not be too assertive, and even if you manage to successfully parry attacks, you should not show your superiority. Your task is to balance the balance, and not aggravate the situation and provoke conflict. And after the psychological pressure on you weakens, you can show your business qualities by offering cooperation.

Step 4 - Propose a Collaboration

Negotiating with a psychological aggressor is the best way to resolve a negative situation, because in this way you, firstly, make sure that you have managed to successfully apply psychological defense techniques, and secondly, let your interlocutor understand that in the future attempts to put pressure on you won't lead to anything good.

Of course, you can “cut off the ends” and permanently end the relationship with the aggressor, but in cases with loved ones or those with whom you will be forced to communicate, this option will not work. Therefore, a focus on long-term cooperation is the best choice. The same applies to situations where, for some reason, you still have to make some concessions.

Achieving a compromise is also beneficial because you will have the opportunity to explain to your partner the incorrectness of his behavior. That is why it is recommended to refrain from accusations and even more so from threats. Having come to a mutually beneficial agreement, you will prevent psychological attacks in the future, because your partner will remember how the past situation ended. This allows you to set up psychological manipulators to build constructive relationships.

Thus, we have a clear algorithm of actions when someone exerts psychological pressure:

1. Use questions to get extra time to think about the situation and determine the advantages of the aggressor.
2. Determine the advantages of the aggressor, i.e. those methods of pressure that he uses or intends to use.
3. Determine your advantages, i.e. those methods of counteraction that will be appropriate and effective in a given situation.
4. Align the balance of power and offer cooperation, for example, to come to a solution that is beneficial for everyone.

We advise you to always adhere to the techniques proposed in the article and the algorithm for protecting against psychological pressure, because at home, at work or in the company of friends, in most cases it is necessary to maintain good relationships. At the same time, we are well aware that these methods are not suitable for every situation, so you need to master other techniques to resist manipulators.

You can get acquainted with some of them in our article "", and Igor Vagin, a candidate of medical sciences, an experienced psychotherapist, business coach and specialist in sales, negotiations and personnel management, will tell you about some in this short video.

Psychological pressure is the influence exerted by one person on other people in order to change their opinions, decisions, judgments, or personal attitudes. It is carried out by far not the most honest and correct, from the point of view of humanity, ways. But, unfortunately, anyone can face it.

Compulsion

Psychological pressure can manifest itself in various forms. Coercion is one of those. This is the most brazen and unprecedented attempt to influence another person. This method is inherently the illegal use of mental violence.

From the outside, its application looks like an informational impact on human consciousness. Which may be accompanied by threats of physical violence. But these are extreme cases.

Most often, the moral rapist operates with other "trump cards". This may be his power, money, influential status, compromising data. Some try to destroy their prey. They say such words that erase the dignity of a person into powder and trample his self-confidence into the dirt. Actions can also be of a similar nature.

Others follow the tactics of obsession. It consists in the intentional moral torment of a person by various methods.

How to react?

This kind of pressure is very difficult to resist. But it is possible (if desired). The most important thing is to accurately identify for yourself the goals that the oppressor is trying to pursue. You have to understand what he wants. And then do the exact opposite. Only without letting him know that the confrontation is intentional. He must perceive the confidence of the one he is trying to make a "victim" as a character trait. In the end, a failed moral abuser will leave the person alone. Because he realizes that he will not achieve the intended goal.

But if he is obsessed with her, then he will have to be patient and fortitude. Because the persecutor just will not lag behind. Before that, he will try all sorts of methods. If the situation causes too much discomfort, it is better to leave it. In the truest sense of the word - to break all contacts. But because of the persecution, which may well begin if the oppressor is fanatical, you can contact the police.

Humiliation

With the help of it, pressure is also often applied. Psychological humiliation is aimed at morally “crushing” a person. Every word is used that can indicate its inferiority, inferiority and insignificance. But how does one manage to influence a person in this way? After all, he, on the contrary, must accept any request or order “with hostility”, getting angry at what he heard! Yes, it's logical. But in reality it happens differently.

Insults introduce a person into a state of some kind of prostration. It is felt even physically - it begins to knock in the temples, breathing quickens, and the beat of the heart gives off somewhere in the throat. A person is consumed by resentment mixed with bewilderment, anger, and other adrenaline-inducing feelings.

This can be understood. After all, humiliation seriously affects the well-being of a person. Because self-respect is the highest moral value. Even in Maslow's pyramid, it is at the fourth level.

So, at the moment when a person is shrouded in a state of resentment, the same aggressor who provoked the incident takes advantage of the opportunity to put pressure on him: “Are you at least capable of doing this?”

Such a phrase literally brings out of a trance. Of course, being in a normal state, a person would instantly dismiss it. It is only in such a situation that the psychological defense mechanism is activated. On a subconscious level, a person wakes up with a desire to prove his worth and convince the offender that he was mistaken about him. And he grabs the errand. And that's exactly what the offender needed.

Confrontation

Since psychological pressure is quite successfully carried out through humiliation, it is necessary to talk about an effective way to deal with this impact.

So, you need to remember that this method only works with those people who are not confident in themselves. A self-sufficient person will only laugh at the attempts of some unsuccessful aggressor to act with groundless insults. They just won't hit him.

Therefore, you need to become such a self-sufficient person. Any rude word should turn into a kind of signal, reminding a person that it is time to activate the defense and not succumb to provocations.

In the soul, of course, a storm can rage. But appearance should disarm the aggressor as much as possible. A relaxed disinterested look, an occasional yawn, a loose posture, a slight smirk - this look will hint to him of his unsuccessful attempts to get a person to do something in such a vile way. And when he finishes crucifying, you can drop a simple indifferent phrase that will confuse him: “Did you say everything?”. Or alternative: "I heard you (a)." And you can limit yourself to just one word: “Good.” It is not necessary to completely ignore the offender. After all, he knows that a person is not deaf, which means that he hears him. And if he is silent, then, most likely, he simply does not know what to answer. So there must be at least one reaction.

suggestion and persuasion

This is a more delicate method by which psychological pressure is exerted. Not everyone owns it. After all, you need to be able to influence someone else's consciousness, provoking an uncritical perception of attitudes and beliefs.

In addition, such manipulators are masters of the word. They are empathic, observant, and know exactly what needs to be said to this or that person, so that he himself, under his influence, redesigns his attitudes. Such people skillfully play with the subconscious of the “victim”. They use intonation, imaginary friendliness and frankness, empathy and many other semi-conscious ways.

A striking example is the well-known fraudulent online schemes - one-page sites, which colorfully describe some kind of "innovative" method of earning, which becomes available to the user after he replenishes his own account (later supposedly needed by him) for a certain, "purely symbolic" amount. These resources are led by videos built on the same principle. A certain person first sincerely tells his story about how he went from rags to riches, and then switches to the user - he begins to say that he deserves a better life, and he should think about himself, family, children, parents. He loses nothing - some five thousand will pay off almost in the first 10 minutes of system activation.

Surprisingly, such psychological pressure works. The words of the “speaker” touch a nerve, penetrate the soul, make you believe, motivate. But, of course, only he benefits from this.

And this is just one example. This also happens very often in real life. And if on the Internet you can simply force yourself to close the page, then in reality you have to resist.

Manipulation

Often, psychological pressure on a person is through this particular method. Manipulation involves the use of violent, deceitful, or covert tactics. And if in the case of humiliation or coercion, a person understands that he is being attacked, then in this situation - no.

A manipulator who promotes his interests at the expense of other people knows how to hide his true face, aggressive behavior and bad intentions. He is well aware of the psychological vulnerabilities of the "victim". He is also cruel and indifferent. The manipulator does not worry that his actions may harm the one he perceives as his "pawn".

Psychological pressure on a person by manipulation is in various ways. Psychologist Harriet Breaker, for example, noted five main points of attention:

• Positive reinforcement is imaginary sympathy, charm, praise, apology, approval, attention, flattery and flattery.
• Negative - promises to get rid of an unpleasant, difficult and problematic situation.
• Partial reinforcement - encouraging a person to persevere, eventually leading him to failure. A good example is the casino. The player may be allowed to win several times, but in the end he will lower everything to the penny, getting bogged down in excitement.
• Punishment - intimidation, abuse, an attempt to impose a sense of guilt.
• Injuries are one-time outbursts of anger, tantrums, insults, as well as other examples of frightening behavior aimed at frightening the victim and convincing her of the seriousness of the manipulator's intentions.

There are also many other ways. But, however, whatever they may be, the goal of the manipulator is always the same - to gain personal benefit and achieve the goal.

How to avoid manipulation?

This question also deserves a short answer. There are a lot of recommendations and advice on how to resist the psychological pressure carried out through manipulation. And no matter which of them a person listens to, he will always have to do the same thing - to keep the situation under his control.

He needs self-confidence, self-control, healthy distrust and attentiveness. It is very important to notice the beginning of the manipulation in time. It's easy - a person will feel how pressure is exerted on his weak points.

The habit of analyzing what is happening still does not hurt. And it's not just about studying the behavior of potential manipulators. A person, in addition, needs to look at his goals, dreams and plans. Do they really belong to him? Or were these installations once imposed on him, and now he follows them? All of this needs to be well thought out.

How to resist psychological pressure? You have to become critical. And visually impregnable. Manipulators always count on quick results. You can't give it to them. For every offer or request, you need to answer: "I'll think about it." And it really doesn't hurt to think about it. In a calm atmosphere, without any pressure, it will be possible to “probe” the request from the inside and understand whether the person really needs help, or he is just trying to benefit for himself.

And if a decision is made to refuse, it is necessary to express it in a firm form, showing character. Hearing an uncertain “Yes, no, probably ...”, the manipulator will begin to “break” the person. This cannot be allowed.

By the way, do not be shy to show your emotions to the “puppeteer”. This will expose him, and he will fall behind. You can get by with a simple phrase, like: “I don’t owe you anything, but because of your persistence, I feel ungrateful!”.

Turning to the law

It is important to note that even the Criminal Code contains information about psychological pressure on a person. It will not be superfluous to open and scroll through the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation to Article No. 40. It is called "Physical or mental coercion." And this is a direct reference to what was said at the very beginning. Only here everything is more serious.

We are talking about crimes committed by people under pressure from the aggressor. The first paragraph of the article states that harm caused to interests protected by law is not considered an offense. But only if the person could not control his actions at that moment. Let's say he was forced at gunpoint, or holding at gunpoint one of his relatives.

But if it was psychological pressure on a person? Article No. 40 in this case refers to the previous one, at number 39. The issue of criminal liability for committing a crime under mental influence is resolved taking into account its provisions.

Article number 39 is called "Urgent Necessity". It says that a crime is not such if it was committed in order to eliminate the danger that threatens a person or other people directly.

However, this is not all that is said in the Criminal Code. Psychological pressure is also mentioned in the 130th article. It notes that the humiliation of the dignity and honor of another person, expressed in extreme form, is punishable by a fine of up to 40,000 rubles, or a salary for three months. In especially severe cases, 120 hours of community service or 6 months of correctional work are assigned. The maximum punishment is restriction of freedom up to 1 year. Very serious consequences of psychological pressure.

An article of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation also states that an insult expressed publicly (through the media, in a speech, in a video message, etc.) is punishable by a double fine. The maximum punishment is 2 years of restriction of liberty.

In the case of children

Psychological pressure on a child is an even more serious topic. Everyone knows how weak and fragile consciousness children have (the majority, anyway). It is extremely easy to influence them. And this is not about healthy pressure, which cannot even be called such (“If you don’t remove the toys, I won’t talk to you” - the impact through guilt). This refers to the real coercion to something, the attack of the child (psychological).

The pressure of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation in this case is defined as "Failure to fulfill the duties of education." This is article #156. Moreover, the provisions apply not only to parents, but also to employees of educational, social, educational and medical organizations. Ill-treatment is what psychological pressure is equated with. The article also prescribes punishments. This can be a fine of 100,000 rubles, compulsory work (440 hours), the elimination of the right to hold a certain position, or imprisonment for three years.

But, of course, cases rarely reach litigation. The article of the Criminal Code characterizes psychological pressure in a specific way, but in life it occurs in a different manifestation.

Many parents simply unceremoniously interfere in the space of the child, brutally control his every step, force him to do what he does not like (go to the boxing section when the kid wants to dance, for example). Some are sure that if you point out shortcomings to him, he will correct them. But it's not. Not with all adults with a strong psyche and mind, this works. And the child will completely withdraw into himself, starting to doubt his own strengths and abilities, and constantly feeling guilty for no reason. Parents, exerting a pressure influence, thus reflect their own experiences and fears. But in the end, they become enemies of their child, not allies. Therefore, the issues of education must be approached very responsibly. The birth and personal formation of a new member of society is a huge responsibility and serious work.

Labor sphere

Finally, I would like to talk a little about psychological pressure at work. Indeed, most often it is in the labor sphere that a person encounters this phenomenon.

It is necessary to understand first of all that the organization in which a person works is just a structure. In which everyone takes his place, and performs certain tasks. And the relationship between colleagues should be appropriate, business-like. If someone suddenly tries to put pressure on a person to serve (substitute, do dirty work, go on a day off), you need to refuse with dignity - somewhat coldly, but as politely as possible. You cannot put other people's interests ahead of your own. Especially if they have enough courage to approach such requirements.

The only exceptions are when a colleague really needs help. By the way, you don’t need to be afraid of gossip, rumors, gossip or attempts to “sit out”. A person must remember that he is a professional in the first place. His skills and performance will not get worse from evil tongues. And with the boss, if he is interested in the topic, you can always explain.

It is much worse if the “onslaught” comes directly from the boss. And there are leaders who are only happy to put psychological pressure on a person. The article of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation here, of course, will not serve as an informational help, but the provisions of the Labor Code - completely.

Most often, ordinary workers are faced with persistent "requests" from the boss to apply for dismissal of their own free will. This contradicts Article 77 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, since such actions exclude the freedom of expression of the employee's will. And a person has every right to apply to the prosecutor's office to open a labor dispute, or go straight to court. But evidence obtained without violating the law will be required. They are needed, by the way, in any case, whatever the complaint.

In summary, I would like to say that the topic of psychological pressure is indeed very detailed and interesting. It contains many more nuances and important points. But with them, if there is a desire, you can familiarize yourself with them individually. Knowledge of this nature is never redundant.

Do you feel that psychological pressure is often put on you? If you are a calm and self-confident person, then you will probably want to answer that you practically do not encounter this. But in vain! Methods of influence can be completely different, and often the “victim” does not even understand that she has just been pressured.

But it has a huge impact on your life! If you do not want to fall into this trap anymore, read our article and use the knowledge for psychological self-defense.

Types of psychological pressure

Psychological pressure is the influence on other people, carried out in order to change their psychological attitudes, opinions, judgments and decisions. It may seem that only strong and result-oriented people resort to it, but this is not so. A confident person will act directly and openly, and not look for workarounds, causing inconvenience to others. There are many types of psychological pressure that you probably have to deal with in life:

1. Compulsion- this is a direct, undisguised effect on another person

It is resorted to only when there is some kind of force, otherwise no one will succumb. Examples of such power can be physical qualities, power, money, information. A person who is being coerced into something is aware of the process taking place - as opposed to being manipulated. You can try to protect yourself from him by hinting to the "presser" that he is acting aggressively - some people do not like to admit this. However, if this does not bother a person, then it is very difficult to resist this type of pressure.

2. humiliation

Another type of psychological pressure, expressed in the desire of the aggressor to morally "crush the victim." In this situation, you can hear a lot of unpleasant things about yourself: you are stupid, scary, clumsy, mediocre, disorganized, etc. … Being in a state of psychological prostration, you lose control over the situation, and at this moment it is very convenient to put pressure on you: “At least you can do this?”. The idea is that if you were sober, you would never agree, but this is where personal defense mechanisms and the desire to prove your own worth come into play. By the way, this technique works solely due to self-doubt.

3. Leaving aside

This kind of psychological pressure stands apart from all others, since its essence lies in trying to starve you out. Simply put, when they try to put pressure on you, and you want to clarify this, the person begins to slip into extraneous topics or even goes into “deep defense”: “Well, what are you, huh?”. Or asks why you keep talking nasty things about him. In this case, it is necessary to track the moment of leaving each time and return to the starting point: “No, we will deal with me later, now we are talking about you.” If you are persistent, then there is a chance that the aggressor will lag behind you with his pressure.

4. Suggestion- this is the view after which he begins to uncritically “swallow” information imposed on him from the outside

The person using this method must be an authority for his victim, otherwise the trick will not work. An extreme version of suggestion is hypnosis, but it can also be used in the waking state. For this, as a rule, games with voice, intonation and other semi-conscious moments are used. Paradoxically, there are people who are not suggestible at all, and you are lucky if you are one of them.

5. Belief

The most rational kind psychological pressure. It appeals to reason and human logic. That is why only people with a normal level of intelligence and development of thinking are subject to him - the rest simply will not understand what they are being told about here. Speech, which includes beliefs, is usually as logical, consistent and conclusive as possible - as soon as the consciousness of the victim catches the slightest inconsistencies, the whole structure immediately collapses.

Oddly enough, it is much easier to resist psychological pressure than to exert it. The first step is to recognize that you are being manipulated. You can see in the partner's behavior signs of the methods of influence described above. Persistently drawing your attention to some aspects of the problem and ignoring others should also alert you - as well as generous promises that cause reasonable doubt. In your state, during manipulation, inexplicable sympathy for a partner, sharp fluctuations in feelings, feelings of lack of time, guilt, obligation may appear - all these things should be a signal that you are being manipulated.

Next, you should inform the interlocutor that he is "brought to clean water." You may question the appropriateness of the actions and decisions that he requires of you. Then offer your own interaction option, which, first of all, will suit you.

Naturally, the manipulator will resist. In this case, it is useful to ask questions aimed at clarifying the situation: what does he mean when he talks about the problem, what objective conditions and restrictions are in place, what should be done to improve the situation, etc. ... Specify why the manipulator chose you and right now - all this allows you to track what the aggressor prefers to “pressure”.

Well, the most useful thing is the banal “turn on your brains”. As already mentioned above, the main task of the manipulator is to activate feelings, emotions, irrational attitudes, because they contribute to the belief in the words of the aggressor. However, as soon as you get out of the state of pliability and soberly analyze the situation, everything changes dramatically. The urgency in resolving the issue disappears, and you no longer feel any particular guilt for yourself. Therefore, as soon as it seems to you that you are being manipulated, start thinking hard. And always take time to reflect - it is this that helps you to step outside the situation and look at it objectively.

In the modern world, it is very important to be able to deal with psychological pressure. We have practically abandoned weapons and the use of physical force, respectively, the enemies are left with only such methods of influence. And in order to live happily, you need to be able to recognize them and protect yourself and your loved ones from such gross psychological interference.