People who believe that others only do hurtful things when there's some legitimate, understandable reason for manipulation. They might delude themselves into believing that uncovering and understanding all the reasons for the manipulator's behavior will be sufficient to make things different. [16] Everyone can benefit from learning about dark psychology. By understanding how these techniques work, you can better defend yourself against them. And if you ever find yourself in a position where you need to use these techniques, you can be sure you’re using them for good. How to Use Dark Psychology

These can motivate the employees to not only sacrifice their personal interests for the greater good, but also do so for a fraction of what they truly deserve for their efforts. A special kind of intimidation tactic. A manipulator suggests to the conscientious victim that they do not care enough, are too selfish or have it too easy. This can result in the victim feeling bad, keeping them in a self-doubting, anxious and submissive position. Having a sufficient level of ruthlessness to have no qualms about causing harm to the victim if necessary. Austin EJ, Vahle N (May 2016). "Associations of the Managing the Emotions of Others Scale (MEOS) with HEXACO personality and with trait emotional intelligence at the factor and facet level". Personality and Individual Differences. 94: 348–353. doi: 10.1016/j.paid.2016.01.047. ISSN 0191-8869.

Dark psychology can be used by manipulative individuals successfully by abusive people who are focused on manipulating and controlling others. Different techniques, tactics, processes and strategies can be used to persuade, convince, influence and manage others for personal gain. However, there is no doubt that such destructive behavior will come at the cost of the victims and targets. If one is unaware of this passive-aggressive ploy, one’s reaction is bristling inadequacy – not good enough. You immediately think about what can I do to gain their acceptance and praise. You try to outdo their perfect friend, sibling, child, etc.

Related: 6 Diversion Tactics Used By Narcissists To Manipulate You Into Silence Other manipulative dark psychology tactics may include –Manipulative speakers often use dark psychology techniques to convince their audience to do something, whether it’s buying a product, voting for a candidate, or supporting a cause. Such (“dark”) persuasion often relies on emotional appeal and logical fallacies to make its case, rather than sound reasoning. 2. Deceptive advertising Only recently, did I realize how much my grandmother used the ‘poor me’ tactic to manipulate me. Her husband was a mean guy and she had to do so much. No doubt she had a hard life but getting a child to play therapist. What was worse was when she wanted me to do something she was all sugar then wham she’d turn cold as ice if she had no need for you. That kind of intermittent reinforcement really skewed my mind. This is perhaps the most extreme example of dark psychology, in which an individual or group seeks to control another. Often you might see this in the case of cult leaders, who are enigmatic enough to convince their followers to do their every bidding. How do people use dark psychology? McMillan DL (2008). But He Says He Loves Me: How to Avoid Being Trapped in a Manipulative Relationship. Allen & Unwin. ISBN 978-1-74175-196-3.

Emotional manipulation methodically wears down your self-worth and self-confidence and damages your trust in your own perceptions. It can make you unwittingly compromise yourself to the point of losing your self-respect and developing a warped concept of reality. With your defenses weakened or completely disarmed in this manner, you are left even more vulnerable to further manipulation.” Adelyn BirchI truly believe that the evil eye is not some mumbo-jumbo. Eyes can be deadly weapons of manipulation. 6) Guilt- Shame Loop – Passive-Aggressive Manipulation Duncan RD. "Influence Versus Manipulation: Understand The Difference". Forbes . Retrieved 21 December 2018.