The stress pattern of the controlling style involves three steps:
- First, he/she becomes even more focused on short-term results and even more dominant.
- When the pressure is increased, this style will stay in its comfort zone - that of the task-oriented styles - and will focus more on details of the past. Like analyzing styles.
- If even more stress is experienced, this style will behave like a facilitating style. The problem is that their own behavior then starts to resemble the style they normally find difficult to deal with, namely the Facilitating Style.
When serious stress occurs, this style starts to behave in the style they have trouble interacting with, namely the Facilitating style. The stress only increases because he/she shows more and more behavior that does not fit with his/her own natural style.