giant-subscribe-png-with-logo

Tag: Manipulation

Control Freaks and Their Victims

Sam Vaknin distinguishes control from manipulation, power plays, and sadomasochism, arguing that control focuses on securing people as sources of outcomes and is largely unconscious. He outlines controller motivations—narcissistic grandiosity and separation/abandonment insecurity—and techniques such as withholding information, intimidation, disorientation (e.g., gaslighting), and expectation-broadcasting. He also explains why some people collude with controllers—seeking a secure base, embracing a victim identity, or validating internalized self-derogation—and describes collusive tactics like ostentatious helplessness, bottom-up control, and inducing unpredictability to provoke micromanagement. Control Freaks and Their Victims

Read More »
21.12.2025

3 Tests+3 Baits: How Narcissist Lures You (Clip Skopje Seminar Opening, May 2025)

The speaker outlined a narcissist’s repetitive recruitment process—spotting, auditioning, baiting (with co-idealization to follow)—that locates and selects targets within familiar social spaces. Auditioning involves three tests: whether the person can be idealized, can provide at least two of the four “S”s (sex, services, supply, safety), and is sufficiently vulnerable. Baiting exploits a simulated “inner child” and the target’s own inner child to infantilize, regress, and indoctrinate the victim into a cult-like shared fantasy, enabling control and long-term exploitation. 3 Tests+3 Baits: How Narcissist Lures You (Clip Skopje Seminar Opening, May 2025)

Read More »
11.12.2025

Narcissist’s Discordant Notes: Why Uncanny Valley Reaction (Conference Presentation)

The speaker explains that exposure to narcissists triggers an “uncanny valley” reaction—an immediate, bodily sense of discomfort—detectable within seconds, due to distinctive postures, gaze, speech patterns, and emotional volatility. Narcissists present a fragmented, grandiose self through pronoun-heavy speech, confabulation, superficial charm, age-inappropriate behaviors, and failures of mentalization, creating a manipulative shared-fantasy that destabilizes others. The resulting experience is disorienting and terrifying because narcissists simulate presence without a continuous self, leaving interlocutors feeling isolated and profoundly uneasy. Narcissist’s Discordant Notes: Why Uncanny Valley Reaction (Conference Presentation)

Read More »
07.12.2025

Why Narcissist Never Feels Sorry

Sam Vaknin explained why narcissists rarely apologize, attributing it to a false self born of childhood trauma, grandiose omnipotent beliefs, entitlement, manipulative skills, and impaired empathy and reality testing. He described how these defenses produce a sense of immunity to consequences, chronic dysphoria beneath grandiosity, and defensive misbehavior that harms others, while noting narcissists can control actions when sufficiently incentivized and thus should generally be held accountable. Practical implications include recognizing manipulative patterns, understanding the narcissist’s internal pain and entitlement, and maintaining boundaries while seeking accountability. Why Narcissist Never Feels Sorry

Read More »
27.11.2025

Victim or Narcissist? Tell Them Apart!

In this video, the speaker explained how to distinguish true victims from narcissists who falsely claim victimhood by highlighting key behaviors such as splitting, generalization, self-pity, and denial of responsibility. Narcissists often portray themselves as flawless victims, avoid accountability, and use victimhood manipulatively for personal gain, whereas real victims exhibit nuanced self-awareness and take responsibility for their circumstances. The speaker provided practical tests and signs to identify narcissistic victimhood, emphasizing the importance of critical evaluation in interactions. Victim or Narcissist? Tell Them Apart!

Read More »
26.10.2025

Narcissist Talks AT You – Not TO You (Clip) (Vaknin Narcissism Summaries YouTube Channel)

The speaker explained that effective communication with narcissists involves focusing on the underlying motives behind their words rather than the content itself. They outlined four primary reasons narcissists communicate: to impress and manipulate others, to confabulate due to memory gaps, to support their grandiose self-image, and to exert control for personal gain. Ultimately, narcissistic communication is goal-oriented and weaponized to maintain their false self and influence others.

Read More »
26.09.2025

Psychopath, Narcissist Manipulate You Differently

The speaker highlighted key differences between narcissists and psychopaths, emphasizing how narcissists manipulate external reality to distort a victim’s internal perception, whereas psychopaths manipulate internal realities to distort external perception. Narcissistic abuse often results in profound, lasting trauma that shatters the victim’s identity, requiring extensive psychological reconstruction, while psychopathic abuse typically causes external harm akin to PTSD. The speaker also warned against glorifying powerful narcissists, noting that many are malignant and harmful despite their public image.

Read More »
21.01.2025

Social Share

Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
WhatsApp
Email
Tags

Most Popular