To get ideas about what everyone can do to celebrate Freedom Week, go here.

For individuals bullied at work, learn the predictable stages of the workplace bullying experience.

Our books – for bullied targets and their families, and for employers wanting to tackle, not ignore, workplace bullying.

Targets who bravely report their abuse to employers are whistleblowers. Their message of incompetent, sadistic managers (or coworkers) within the ranks is not news welcomed by executives who want these types of “HR” issues pushed down to the lowest level to make them disappear. In fact, mitigation of bullying is a leadership job, not HR.

Targets’ reports focus on facts, data. They expect a rational evidence-driven response. Oops (see Expectations in another section about what Freedom means). Bullies and their defending organizations choose a very different path. It does not turn out well for the target-complainant.

Jennifer Freyd, PhD coined the acronym D.A.R.V.O. to describe the non-rational response to a complaint of psychological abuse (often in the sexual harassment context). Her post-academic endeavor is the Center for Institutional Courage. DARVO as a set of responses is cowardice by perpetrators and employers.

Rather than accept responsibility for their heinous actions, bullies Deny their conduct and Attack the complainant. Victim blaming and shaming occurs. Targets are gaslighted — denied the right to define themselves and their experiences based on reality — to the extent they come to doubt their own eyes and ears about their situation. Targets are made to feel crazy.

The RVO sequence refers to pushing the gaslighting to an unconscionable intensity. The roles of Victim and Offender are Reversed over time. So that the bully claims to be victim of the brutal target. It’s a world completely upside down. Talks about crazymaking!

Of course the RVO is done for an audience of executives and the public. It exacerbates the health harm inflicted on the target, the original and only victim, while soothing nervous executives that they might have to act to stop one of their own. With the switch, the employer feels justified to not take responsible action to hold the accused bully accountable.

WBI research shows that between 67-77% of targets lose the job they love once bullied. Bullies, on the other hand, are retained despite the destruction on lives and productivity they wreak. This pattern of granting impunity to bullies and harassers is what triggered the #MeToo movement.

Freyd correctly calls out organizations for their irrational cowardice. However, courage is in short supply.

I tell targets about DARVO so you do not take personally the retaliatory attacks guaranteed to follow complaints about the abuse you have to endure. Know the pattern is predictable. Bullies do not voluntarily take responsibility for their actions. They must be compelled by an ethical employer. Targets unknowingly trigger envy and jealousy in their bullies. Attacks from bullies are frequently manifestations of those felt emotions, often done without awareness of origins.

After HR and legal departments get involved with your complaint, the RVO sequence kicks in. It’s all they know how to do. The primary job of staffs of both departments is to protect management, executives and the organization’s public reputation. HR never tells targets that, but they soon come to learn HR is not your friend or advocate.

Let’s connect the organization’s DARVO response to the prior topic of Expectations (day 4 of Freedom Week). Targets believing it’s a fair, benevolent world might also expect that employers will do the right thing when given the facts they assembled for the complaint. Oops. Not so. The DARVO response ignores data, facts and accountability. DARVO is the typical response to those who dare to complain about abuse/bullying/harassment.

By knowing this beforehand, targets should consider very carefully whether or not to ever file a formal complaint or lawsuit. The financial and psychological risks are great. In either case, best to complain from outside. Get another job or quit in order to be safe when and if you complain.