Scapegoats can suffer a variety of negative consequences including loss of social status, economic problems, social isolation, and depression. People are more likely to engage in scapegoating when they are stressed, experiencing oppression, or afraid.
Scapegoating can lead to dangerous self-righteousness
Scapegoating not only feels cathartic but also stokes a sense of self-righteousness, a “seduction of virtue,” Stewart said. By casting others as bad or inferior, a person will “come up smelling like a rose,” she added.
Scapegoats often have trouble feeling safe in relationships – especially intimate relationships – due to the massive betrayal of trust in their family. They can also have challenges managing emotions, and find they either feel overwhelmed and anxious, or shut down and not know how they are feeling.
For individuals, scapegoating is a psychological defense mechanism of denial through projecting responsibility and blame on others. [2] It allows the perpetrator to eliminate negative feelings about him or herself and provides a sense of gratification.
A family scapegoat is a person who takes on the role of 'black sheep' or 'problem child' in their family and gets shamed, blamed, and criticized for things that go wrong within the family unit, even when these things are entirely outside of their control.
The purpose of a scapegoat is to pass responsibility onto someone else. Usually, this person is unsuspecting at first and agrees because they are trying to get along with others. This technique of passing the buck is very common with narcissists, sociopaths, and addicts.
Of the child roles in the narcissistic family, the entitled and enmeshed golden child is probably most likely to develop a narcissistic personality. However, being scapegoated can also lead to narcissism, particularly the covert form.
Scapegoating is defined by dictionary.com as “the act or practice of assigning blame or failure to another, as to deflect attention or responsibility away from oneself.” Cheating individuals often use scapegoating as a form of Gaslighting, scooping blame onto their partner in order to justify their extracurricular ...
A scapegoated child may feel isolated to the point that they do not know how to bring attention to the pain they are feeling. In these cases, self-harm or self-sabotaging behaviors could help to draw attention to their suffering.
Healing from shame requires a high level of awareness when the Inner Scapegoat has been activated – challenging negative and self-punitive beliefs, and truthfully reframing victimizing experiences. Scapegoats must consistently stand up to the idea that they are bad or unlovable. This will likely take a lot of practice.
Potential Consequences Of Scapegoating
Scapegoating is a destructive behavior that can have long-term psychological effects on both parties involved. In the target of this behavior, feelings of worthlessness, guilt, isolation, and even conditions like depression and/or anxiety can arise.
As adults, scapegoated children may find themselves paralyzed with fear when they consider dissenting in work environments or with their partners. Disagreeing with someone brings oneself into the forefront. The act delineates the self in stark relief.
Like the strong goat Aaron selected, the target of family scapegoating is also often the strongest and healthiest member of the family.
According to the American Psychological Association, scapegoating is “the process of directing one's anger, frustration, and aggression onto others and targeting them as the source of one's problems and misfortunes.” The word's origin is an ancient Jewish tradition in which a goat was symbolically sent into the ...
The “plebs” might resent them, but a scapegoat is a victim that can be safely attacked.
Childhood scapegoats may end up in relationships with someone NPD because it feels familiar, verbal abuse is normal to them, and they're used to being treated this way. Low self-esteem. The combination of being shamed, verbally abused, and humiliated can create challenges with self-esteem.
Effects of Being a Scapegoat
Trauma: Being deprived of a family's love, singled out as the “bad one” in the household, and having one's positive attributes overlooked can set up a child for a lifetime of emotional and psychological distress, where they struggle believing they are good, worthy, competent, or likable.
Speak up for yourself when you are scapegoated.
I told you that I will not be held responsible for your financial troubles.” Keep in mind that after changing your boundaries, people will likely test your boundaries. They may try hard to make you give in, but it is important to hold firm in your boundaries.
Scapegoats are chosen because some part of their identity reminds the narcissist of all the painful thoughts, feelings, and emotions that they have suppressed within themselves. So, when a narcissist attacks their scapegoat, what they are really doing is attacking the parts of themselves that they find unacceptable.
They manipulate others to support their distorted version of reality. All the while, they enjoy the feeling of power they get from making the scapegoat suffer. The narcissist is driven by envy, jealousy and a lack of empathy.
The phrase 'Scapegoat' is used to indicate that someone is being made to take the blame for something. Example of Use: “They made Jennifer the scapegoat, but it wasn't all her fault.”
For Girard, scapegoats are always innocent of the specific charges laid against them; the accusations are always false; scapegoating is always a heinous act of injustice.
The Scapegoat
The Scapegoat is the opposite of the Hero role, and is seen as the problem of the family. The Scapegoat is also referred to as the “black sheep” of the family, and has a hard time fitting in and relating to the other family members. His/her behavior is seen as bad and never good enough.
One significant comparison between narcissists and scapegoats is that people identified with narcissistic traits show lack of empathy, whereas people with scapegoat traits are empathic.