Featured Image Credit: Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty Images/Getty Stock Images
Topics: Celebrity, US News, Blake Lively, Justin Baldoni
Rhiannon Ingle
Topics: Celebrity, US News, Blake Lively, Justin Baldoni
An expert has explained the 'DARVO' tactic following Blake Lively's lawyers' response to Justin Baldoni's recent lawsuit accusing him of using it.
The latest update in the Baldoni-Blake Lively ordeal follows the actor filing a $400 million lawsuit against her, her husband Ryan Reynolds, their publicist Leslie Sloane and Sloane's PR firm Vision PR.
In her response following Baldoni's countersuit, Lively's legal team has since issued a statement accusing Baldoni of employing a 'DARVO' technique to 'turn the tables' on her.
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A statement from Baldoni's legal team said: "This lawsuit is a legal action based on an overwhelming amount of untampered evidence detailing Blake Lively and her team’s duplicitous attempt to destroy Justin Baldoni, his team and their respective companies by disseminating grossly edited, unsubstantiated, new and doctored information to the media.
"It is clear based on our own all out willingness to provide all complete text messages, emails, video footage and other documentary evidence that was shared between the parties in real time, that this is a battle she will not win and will certainly regret.
"Blake Lively was either severely misled by her team or intentionally and knowingly misrepresented the truth. Ms. Lively will never again be allowed to continue to exploit actual victims of real harassment solely for her personal reputation gain at the expense of those without power.
"Let’s not forget, Ms. Lively and her team attempted to bulldoze reputations and livelihoods for heinously selfish reasons through their own dangerous manipulation of the media before even taking any actual legal action.
"We know the truth, and now the public does too. Justin and his team have nothing to hide, documents do not lie."
Lively soon responded to Baldoni's countersuit with a statement from the Gossip Girl star's lawyers that was given to The Hollywood Reporter on Thursday afternoon (16 January) reading: "This is an age-old story: A woman speaks up with concrete evidence of sexual harassment and retaliation and the abuser attempts to turn the tables on the victim.
"This is what experts call DARVO. Deny. Attack. Reverse Victim Offender."
But what does that actually mean?
Well, as briefly outlined in the statement, DARVO is an acronym that stands for Deny, Attack, and Reverse Victim and Offender.
"It describes a manipulative tactic often used by abusers to avoid taking responsibility for their actions and shift the blame onto their victims,” explains Avigail Lev, PsyD, founder of Bay Area CBT Center and CBT Online, as per VeryWellMind.
Dr Lev continues: "Abusers attack the credibility, character, or motives of the victim. They may use insults, threats, gaslighting, or manipulation to discredit the victim's account of the abuse."
According to the expert, DARVO negatively impacts the victim's mental health because they 'internalise the false narrative that they are the perpetrator and that the problems in the relationship or abuse are their fault'.
"They convince themselves that they are the cause of their own mistreatment, leading to feelings of self-blame and self-doubt," she adds.
She also notes that being subjected to repeated manipulation through DARVO can lead to 'anxiety, depression, low self-esteem, self-doubt, a sense of powerlessness, and narcissistic abuse syndrome'.
Dr Lev also warns it can result in a phenomenon known as 'pseudo identity/personality' which sees the victim develop a 'pseudo personality' that echoes and repeats the narcissist's false self, 'their grandiose narrative of themselves', she further states.