That is a VERY interesting observation. W's step father, who was there yesterday, and who is, in reality, the father figure who raised W, is THE MOSt hyper critical, never wrong, argumentative people I have ever met. They fought constantly growing up.
I see where W learned the behavior. Might this have something to do with W's inability to accept a compliment, like "you really look great in that skirt"?
The answer is YES. A hyper-critical parent will do it! She has probably internalized this critical voice and can't let herself hear compliments without throwing five more criticisms on herself in response.
Also, she may project the critical father onto you - something that will alienate most people from their spouses and the world. If she feels she must be perfect in everyway, and nobody can be, she may point a finger outside herself to the man in front of her when she hears that internal critic.
