The Deflection Playbook of Every Manipulator DARVO is an acronym describing the manipulation pattern used by perpetrators when confronted about harmful behavior: Deny the behavior, Attack the person confronting them, and Reverse the Victim and Offender positions. This three-step sequence transforms a confrontation about the perpetrator’s wrongdoing into a situation where the perpetrator emerges as the victim and the actual victim is positioned as the aggressor. DARVO is observable across contexts from interpersonal abuse to institutional wrongdoing to political scandals. Understanding the pattern reveals how manipulators systematically avoid accountability while maintaining control and damaging their accusers. The term was coined...