In psychology, manipulation is defined as an action designed to influence or control another person, usually in an underhanded or unfair manner which facilitates one's personal aims.[1] Methods someone may use to manipulate another person may include seduction, suggestion, coercion, and blackmail to induce submission.[2][3] Manipulation is generally considered a dishonest form of social influence as it is used at the expense of others.[4] Barring mental disabilities, humans are inherently capable of manipulative and deceptive behavior, with the main differences being of specific personality characteristics or disorders.[5][6][7][8]
^Lee, K., & Ashton, M. C. (2013). The H factor of personality: Why some people are manipulative, self-entitled, materialistic, and exploitive—and why it matters for everyone.
^Ekman, P. (2009). Telling lies: Clues to deceit in the marketplace, politics, and marriage (revised edition). WW Norton & Company.
^DePaulo, B. M., Kirkendol, S. E., Tang, J., & O'Brien, T. P. (1988). The motivational impairment effect in the communication of deception: Replications and extensions. Journal of nonverbal Behavior, 12, 177-202.
^Bursten, B. (1972). The manipulative personality. Archives of general psychiatry, 26(4), 318-321.