When Boundaries Are Misused

Boundaries are important in daily life, mental health, and overall well-being. They are a foundation of healthy relationships, peace of mind, and individual well-being. Unfortunately, disguised coercion, often misused to erode boundaries, may be wielded to gain compliance and control. And while boundaries are designed to protect an individual’s autonomy, emotional health, and safety, they can and are often manipulated to serve agendas of dominance or coercion. This is true in romantic relationships, but also occurs in business, parent-child, teacher-student, and other interpersonal dynamics.

This infographic discusses numerous manifestations of disguised coercion as boundary misuse, including conditional affection, punitive misuse, micromanagement, isolation, and gaslighting. Lastly, while this list isn’t exhaustive, it offers insight into boundary misuse for control and some of the resulting impacts of this pattern of abuse.

Download: Disguised Coercion: When Boundaries Are Misused