The Science of Workplace Gaslighting: Why Self-Doubt Isn't a Character Flaw

TEST_YOURSELF · How well do you know this science?

1. 01 What does the DARVO acronym stand for?

   Deny, Attack, and Reverse Victim and OffenderDoubt, Argue, Retreat, Void, OverreactDefend, Accuse, Rationalize, Victimize, OverruleDistract, Avoid, Redirect, Vindicate, Object

   DARVO — Deny, Attack, and Reverse Victim and Offender — was named and empirically tested by Harsey, Zurbriggen and Freyd (2017): about 72% of confronted wrongdoers used all three components together. source ↗

2. 02 According to a 2020 experimental study, what happens to observers' judgments when a perpetrator uses DARVO instead of simple denial?

   Observers see through it and trust the victim moreObservers rate the perpetrator as more credible and the victim as less credibleObservers become neutral and form no opinion at allObservers rate both people as equally credible

   Harsey and Freyd (2020) found DARVO use shifted observer judgments toward the perpetrator and away from the victim, compared to denial alone — showing the tactic works on third parties, not just the direct target. source ↗

3. 03 In Asch's classic experiments, about what percentage of participants conformed at least once to an answer they could see was wrong, when a unanimous group gave it?

   About 5%About 25%About 75%About 99%

   About 75% of participants conformed at least once across the trials, even though the same task produced almost no errors when there was no group pressure — showing the conformity came from social pressure, not confusion. source ↗

4. 04 What is 'institutional betrayal'?

   A synonym for ordinary conflict between two coworkersHarm an institution does to people who depend on it by failing to prevent, or respond supportively to, wrongdoingA legal term describing wrongful termination lawsuitsA standard part of annual performance reviews

   Smith and Freyd (2014) defined institutional betrayal as the institution's own failure to prevent or respond to wrongdoing — distinct from the wrongdoing itself. A 2023 workplace study found it followed about 55% of workplace sexual harassment cases and independently predicted worse health outcomes. source ↗

5. 05 According to sociologist Paige Sweet's 2019 analysis, gaslighting is best understood as:

   A rare individual personality disorderA purely private problem between two people that has nothing to do with institutionsA structural process tied to gendered and institutional power over whose account of reality countsA miscommunication problem that better listening alone can resolve

   Sweet's American Sociological Review analysis reframed gaslighting as a socially patterned strategy that exploits structural inequalities in credibility and power — not merely an individual manipulator's personal quirk. source ↗