Page 32 - How To Analyze People: 13 Laws About the Manipulation of the Human Mind, 7 Strategies to Quickly Figure Out Body Language, Dive into Dark Psychology and Persuasion for Making People Do What You Want

Manipulation, Persuasion and Dark Psychology Explained

As bad as this behavior can be, we often don’t want to come right out and

call someone manipulative. Being called a manipulator is a criticism against
yours or someone else’s character. If manipulation and persuasion are almost

similar (separated only by intention), why is manipulation viewed as

immoral and just plain wrong? Humans are always trying to influence each

other in one way or another, but certain traits associated with manipulation

make this form of influence far worse than all the others.

We are exposed to manipulation all the time. Sometimes we’re on the

receiving end, and sometimes we’re the ones who are doing the

manipulating. Gaslighting, a common manipulative term, is when you try to

encourage someone else to doubt their own decisions in favor of going along
with yours instead. When you make someone feel bad (whether directly or

indirectly) about not being able to follow through or backing out of a

promise, that’s a form of manipulation. Being pressured to go along with the

group just to gain acceptance or approval is a form of manipulation. It’s

happening around us and in society all the time.

What sets manipulation apart from all the other persuasive methods we use

is because manipulation tends to directly harm the one who is being

manipulated. Take cigarette ads for example. They manipulative you into
thinking it is “cool”, but it directly has a harmful effect on your health.

Phishing or scams that manipulate you into thinking you stand a chance at

winning a substantial sum of money are directly harmful to you because they

result in fraud or identity theft. Politicians in some countries rely on
manipulative tactics to weaken the notion of democracy. The direct and more

often than not, the harmful impact of manipulation is what sets it apart from