Surely you have seen or are familiar with the movie "The Wizard of Oz". In a scene from the movie, the wicked witch wants to upset the heroine Dorothy. To achieve her mission, she carries out a plan based on discrediting the protagonist through actions aimed at lowering her reputation. In this way, other characters appear who aim to harm the heroine.
If we think beyond the movie, this can also happen in real life. Aren't there people who try to smear others at the request of someone in particular? Manipulation can be the order of the day if you don't know how to proceed with it. Having effective tools to deal with this class of people can be useful to handle these situations in a different way. Do you want to know more about this? In this Psychology-Online article, we will provide you with information about what are flying monkeys in psychology.
When we talk about the narcissist's flying monkeys, we are referring to those people who are used by a narcissistic person in order to achieve their own goals
Characteristics of the psycho's flying monkeys
To further understand the flying monkeys of the narcissistic or psychopath, it is important to account for some particularities that are presented in them:
- Shows fidelity to the narcissist.
- They act under the orders of narcissistic people when it comes to causing harm to others.
- It denies the real version of the narcissist, creating a fictitious image.
- adopt an attitude of contempt for the victim, sometimes without realizing it.
- They show obedience to authority.
Beyond the intentionality of each person to adopt the role of the narcissist's flying monkey, what It is true that there are variables that influence when thinking about the reasons why this it happens. For this reason, we will address in the following paragraphs the main causes linked to this issue:
- have low self-esteem: when a person has feelings of inferiority with respect to his environment, one of the ways of trying get approval It consists of becoming a flying monkey. In this sense, you can seek a strengthening of your own personality through this condition.
- Avoid feeling guilty: the person with narcissistic traits usually blame other people for the actions he commits. For this reason, if the person who adopts the role of the flying monkey decided to reject the tasks that the narcissist imparts, he could feel guilt given the possible manipulation. Implicitly, there is low self-esteem behind it.
- Possess narcissistic attitudes: When the person understands that his actions can have a direct influence on another person, becoming the flying monkey can respond to the search for self-satisfaction that narcissistic people have.
It is logical to think that being a narcissist's flying monkey can cause a wide variety of conflicts, both in the victims and in those people who adopt the role of the flying monkey. Therefore, it is essential to have resources that allow the narcissist's flying monkeys to be neutralized. Next, we will talk about how to achieve this purpose:
Do therapy for flying monkeys
Therapy consists of a space that allows reflection on personal aspects that cause problems for the person. In this sense, it is important to work on the emotions, thoughts and behaviors that account for the way in which the flying monkeys manipulate the person. In this way, it is possible to adopt new strategies that favor strengthening autonomy and personal decisions.
Analyze the actions of the flying monkeys
In other words, it lies in understanding when a flying monkey's action is intended to cause personal harm. Given this, it is important put limits through actions and words that are intended to give way to the narcissist's flying monkey manipulation.
Study the environment of flying monkeys
When we understand in which social spheres the flying monkeys move, the greater the possibilities that will arise to neutralize them. One of the options is cut off social contact or refer to one authority figure set precise limits. In this article we tell you What is zero contact and how is it applied?.
We hope you have found this article interesting about what they are and how to neutralize the narcissist's flying monkeys. However, as we have mentioned before, it can also happen that you have unconsciously taken on the role of the flying monkey.
In these cases, you will find our articles very useful. How to identify a psychopath and The types of narcissism and characteristics to identify them to avoid being a victim of the plans of these types of characters.
This article is merely informative, in Psychology-Online we do not have the power to make a diagnosis or recommend a treatment. We invite you to go to a psychologist to treat your particular case.
