Antisocial or Asocial—What's the Difference?
- Anna Pearl
- Jun 9, 2022
- 2 min read
One thing that really drives me up the wall is when people call me antisocial. When a lot of us hear antisocial we probably think "not social." Quite literally anti-social. The truth is, that's not the meaning of the word.
There are multiple definitions of antisocial, but none of them really fall along the lines of what I just mentioned. Instead, they hint more towards an antisocial person being aggressive.
Antisocial people are unwilling (or unable) to associate with other people in a normal and/or friendly way. They may be antagonistic, hostile, or otherwise unfriendly. And also may determinedly violate various rules and restrictions. Antisocial people usually lack empathy or feeling towards others, instead lashing out without regard of how it may affect another.
When someone is standing at the back of the room, avoiding contact with other people, they aren't being rude or purposely violating rules. Usually, they're simply not comfortable joining the group for a number of various reasons. This kind of person would be asocial.
Asocial people are more along the lines of what people mean when they say "antisocial." Or, to rephrase, people should be saying asocial most of the time when they say antisocial. They're using one word for the other word's meaning.
The simple definition of 'asocial' is one who is withdrawn from society. They're often indifferent towards engaging with standard social behaviors. They're capable of socializing and being kind as they do so, they just prefer not to socialize in general due to a lack of interest. Introverts are often asocial.
To a person who knows what antisocial and asocial mean, to be called antisocial is really hurtful and it's not at all right. When people call each other antisocial, it's usually very inaccurate and all-in-all unnecessary. It usually comes across as an insult regardless of which word you use.
But if you do need to use these words, remember the difference, my friends. Antisocial is not the same as asocial; using the wrong one could be quite harmful.
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