DARVO
abbreviation
a manipulation technique used to avoid accountability
What does DARVO mean?
DARVO is an abbreviation of “Deny, Attack and Reverse Victim and Offender,” and refers to a manipulative technique whereby someone, especially an abuser, reacts to another’s attempts to hold them accountable for wrongdoing/harm by denying the alleged behavior, attacking and shifting the blame to the accuser, or reframing themselves as a victim.
Examples of DARVO
… I think it’s quite clear that the folks working on this are hiding behind calling advocates adversarial in an attempt to excuse their bad actions. The actions they’ve taken provoked these responses. They’re literally pulling a DARVO.
—@cycling.city, BlueSky, 16 May 2025
Look for DARVO in your workplace. It might show up in a hostile message like the VC received. It might be more subtle: I didn’t mean any harm; they’re making a big deal out of nothing. If they were more of a team player, I’d be better able to complete more of my work on time.
—Every one of the leaders of integrity, (whistleblowers), I have had the great honour to help, and every one of the hundreds I have met, was subjected to DARVO by those whose criminality or corruption they exposed.
—
Where does DARVO come from?
DARVO was coined by psychologist Jennifer Joy Freyd in 1997.
My proposal, currently very speculative, is that a frequent reaction of an abuser to being held accountable is the ‘DARVO’ response. ‘DARVO’ stands for ‘Deny, Attack and Reverse Victim and Offender’. It is important to distinguish types of denial, for an innocent person will probably deny a false accusation. Thus denial is not evidence of guilt. However, I propose that a certain kind of indignant self-righteous, and overly stated, denial may in fact relate to guilt.
—
How is DARVO used?
Most often as a noun, but sometimes as a verb.
DARVO is an effective tactic, her [Jennifer J. Freyd’s] research suggests, in that people who “get DARVO’d” may be more likely to blame themselves for what happened. Prior research shows self-blame is associated with silencing.
—DARVO is a technique we may well encounter in our daily life when dealing with sociopathic personalities. This type of person-to-person psychological warfare is designed to deflect any penalty for misbehavior, and turn it instead into an opportunity to gain power over you. For a well-adjusted, mentally healthy person, to be DARVO’d is a bewildering and unsettling experience.
—
More Slang Words
See All
