Are You a Victim of Gaslighting? How to Avoid Being Manipulated by an Unethical Leader

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - March 27, 2017 - PRLog -- Let's say, just for the sake of discussion, that the leader of a country stated his predecessor had committed a federal crime. Then, when asked to provide proof, he pivoted, declaring we misunderstood his blatant accusation. What about that same leader denying making statements when he's been recorded making those very statements? Unlikely, right? What's even more unlikely is that this guy has a loyal following who believes him. How does this happen? It may be a little psychological trick called gaslighting.

Gaslighting is a tactic in which the victim is manipulated into questioning their reality. Through methodical mental exploitation, the perpetrator is able to control the victim's perceptions of themself and their environment, thereby providing control over the victim's behaviors.

The term "gaslighting" originated with the play Angel Street and its subsequent 1944 film Gaslight starringIngrid Bergman and Charles Boyer, in which a husband attempts to convince his wife she is crazy by manipulating small elements of her environment. For instance, per the movie title, he dims the gaslights and then pretends that she's the only one who thinks the room is getting darker. Slowly and steadily, the wife begins to succumb to the self-doubt created by the subtle changes.

In the beginning of the article, I loosely described a leader who refutes the reality we all see. You probably thought I was discussing President Trump and his endless supply of falsehoods (his 'landslide' election, Russian hacking, history of sexual harassment, border wall, ability to save jobs/healthcare/economy, etc and etc and etc). I was, but I also described the actions of many other ethically-dubious leaders.

   Leaders (the ethically-dubious ones, not you) utilize gaslighting to gain...

Read more at: www.leadersayswhat.com/2017/03/are-you-a-victim-of-gaslighting