在心理學中,通過“扭曲受害者眼中的真實”來對對方進行情緒控製的操縱行為,被稱為“煤氣燈操縱法” 。
而“煤氣燈效應”的概念,源自帕特裏克·漢密爾頓1938年創作的劇本。1944年,改編自該劇本的經典黑色懸疑片《煤氣燈下》(Gaslight)問世。影片講述了丈夫為了謀取妻子的財產,千方百計把妻子逼瘋的故事。
劇中,妻子看到了微弱的煤氣燈光,丈夫卻一直否認,說她看錯了。妻子單純地愛著丈夫,對其深信不疑,久而久之就確信自己真的哪裏出了毛病。
US-based author of The Gaslight Effect, Dr Robin Stern, outlined the insidious nature of gaslighting, writing: "It's a form of emotional abuse and manipulation that is difficult to recognize and even harder to break free from."
The term describes a type of emotional abuse, and unlike other forms, is difficult to recognize because it distorts a person's sense of reality.
At its mildest, gaslighting leaves victims uneasy, wondering why they always seem to end up in the wrong.“
At it's worst, gaslighting leads to major depression, with formerly strong, vibrant persons reduced to abject misery and self-hatred.