{"id":50938,"date":"2021-10-01T08:46:00","date_gmt":"2021-10-01T12:46:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?p=50938"},"modified":"2021-10-11T14:26:12","modified_gmt":"2021-10-11T18:26:12","slug":"the-victim-mentality","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/the-victim-mentality\/","title":{"rendered":"The Oz Principle: Understanding the Victim Mentality"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>What is the victim mentality? How can you tell when someone&#8217;s actions stem from a place of victimhood? <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The victim mentality is the collection of beliefs, attitudes, and thinking patterns that emphasize your powerlessness in the face of circumstances and other people&#8217;s actions. In their book <em>The Oz Principle<\/em>, authors Craig Hickman, Roger Connors, and Tom Smith distinguish between two types of victim behavior: passivity and selfishness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In this article, we\u2019ll discuss what being a \u201cvictim\u201d means in the context of \u201cthe Oz Principle,\u201d and what the consequences of victimhood are.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<!--more-->\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>The Victim Mentality<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The victim mentality encompasses behaviors and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/how-to-break-negative-thought-patterns\/\">thought patterns<\/a> that keep you trapped, disempowered, and unable to realize your potential. They prevent you from taking advantage of opportunities to learn and grow.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>That said, you really <em>can<\/em> be a victim of circumstance or other people\u2019s mistreatment at times. No matter what happens, there are almost always ways you can act to make your situation better. (Shortform note: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.the2percentfactor.com\/blog\/2017\/10\/23\/eliminating-the-victim-mentality-improving-workplace-culture\">There\u2019s a difference between playing the victim and being a target at work<\/a>. Some employees are targets of bullying by a coworker or a group (called <a href=\"https:\/\/smallbusiness.chron.com\/mobbing-workplace-43426.html\">mobbing<\/a>), but targeted individuals often have a choice in how they respond.)&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The authors divide typical victim behaviors into two categories: passivity and selfishness. (Shortform note: The essence of both is that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rtwmatters.org\/article\/article.php?id=1020&amp;t=dealing-with-the-victim-mentality\">they\u2019re reactive, in contrast to accountability, which is proactive<\/a>.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Passivity&nbsp;<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>This category includes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Ignoring or denying problems<\/li><li>Acknowledging a problem but waiting for it to go away on its own, or for an obvious solution to appear<\/li><li>Using confusion as an excuse to not solve a problem<\/li><li>Refusing to respond to a problem unless it\u2019s on someone\u2019s direct orders<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>We see these behaviors everywhere\u2014in individuals, within companies, and even on a larger, national scale. Consider the issue of climate change: Many people ignore it, deny its existence, pretend it doesn\u2019t and won\u2019t affect them, or claim it will fix itself over time. But none of those approaches will resolve the problem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>(Shortform note: Passive behavior, which causes you to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/stuck-in-life\/\">feel stuck<\/a> at work so you complain rather than acting, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lifehack.org\/879761\/how-to-stop-being-passive\">may stem from a lack of energy and motivation, a lack of goals, or analysis paralysis<\/a>. Alternatively, you may be passive simply because <a href=\"https:\/\/blog.ideacafe.com\/4-signs-you-are-being-too-passive-work\">you haven\u2019t learned assertiveness<\/a>, not because you want to duck accountability. Either way, it doesn\u2019t help you or your company succeed.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Selfishness<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>The second category of victim behavior includes:&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Shifting responsibility or blame onto other people<\/li><li>Preparing excuses in advance in case something goes wrong<\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/how-to-create-a-narrative\/\">Creating a narrative<\/a> that justifies your actions and absolves you of any wrongdoing<\/li><li>Choosing not to get involved in order to avoid risk<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>By blaming others rather than considering how your actions (or inaction) played a part in the failure, you&#8217;re unlikely to learn, and you set yourself up to miss future problems as well. People who <a href=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/avoidance-of-accountability-in-a-team\/\">avoid accountability<\/a> end up feeling powerless and losing motivation, which makes it even harder to move from failure to success.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>(Shortform note: Similarly, a <em>Harvard Business Review<\/em> article also notes that <a href=\"https:\/\/hbr.org\/2010\/05\/how-to-stop-the-blame-game\">shifting blame erodes your credibility and performance<\/a>. To keep blame from spreading, the authors recommend that you: Resist blaming others, only blame constructively with the goal of learning, own failures, always <a href=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/how-to-focus-on-learning\/\">focus on learning<\/a>, and reward people for making mistakes that teach valuable lessons. Rather than blaming, sales trainer Grant Cardone recommends assuming \u201cradical control\u201d of your circumstances even when you\u2019re not at fault, because <a href=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/app\/book\/the-10x-rule\/chapter-6\">when you assume a victim role, you give up your power to effect change<\/a>.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Victim Mentality<\/strong> vs. Victimization<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p><em>The Oz Principle<\/em>\u2019s \u201cvictimhood\u201d aligns with what other people refer to as <em>a victim mentality<\/em>: when you view yourself as a permanent victim, blaming every negative thing in your life on the actions of others. Usually, a victim mentality describes someone who consistently, repeatedly refuses to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/accepting-responsibility\/\">take responsibility<\/a> for their actions, or exaggerates their suffering to gain sympathy. A key distinction is that a victim mentality refers only to people <em>falsely<\/em> claiming to be victims, not someone who has experienced a crime or disaster; you can suffer real hardships, literally becoming a victim, and not wind up exhibiting a victim mentality.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Scientific American<\/em>\u2019s \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.scientificamerican.com\/article\/unraveling-the-mindset-of-victimhood\/\">Unraveling the Mindset of Victimhood<\/a>\u201d gives an overview of psychological and clinical research on the victim mentality (or &#8220;interpersonal victimhood&#8221;), discussing its signs and consequences. For example, the article cites clinical research that observed four key components of interpersonal victimhood: wanting to be viewed as a victim, moral superiority, a lack of empathy for others, and dwelling on the past.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Another word for having a victim mentality is <em>victimism<\/em>\u2014not to be confused with <em>victimization<\/em>, which refers to the process of becoming a victim.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Unlike typical characterizations of the victim mentality, <em>The Oz Principle<\/em>\u2019s take on victims\/victimhood is a narrow one, because this book is serving a specific purpose: to help individuals and organizations overcome work-related problems. Consequently, the book doesn\u2019t always convey the complexities of distinguishing victimism from victimization. In real life, there are times when \u201cpassive\u201d and \u201cselfish\u201d behaviors are the best course of action\u2014or they\u2019re your only option.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For example, in an organization where people are reprimanded for not following instructions or acting outside the boundaries of their specific role, you\u2019re more likely to be \u201cpassive\u201d rather than proactive for fear of losing your job. Likewise, keeping a written record of events and saving emails so you can defend yourself from potential blame\u2014viewed by the authors as selfish or victim behavior\u2014allows you to avoid being taken advantage of. <em>The Oz Principle<\/em> can come off as unempathetic to employees who may be dealing with truly toxic work environments.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Signs You\u2019re Stuck in a Victim Mentality<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>You may be acting from a victim mentality without being aware of it.<\/strong> Here are the common passive and\/or selfish behaviors indicating you\u2019re stuck:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Deflecting responsibility (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/stop-making-excuses\/\">making excuses<\/a>, blaming others, or waiting for someone else to act.)<\/li><li>Rejecting opportunities to improve (ignoring feedback and being defensive)<\/li><li>Being pessimistic and negative (complaining without offering solutions)<\/li><li>Being lazy (prioritizing easy or short-term solutions over long-term ones, or glossing over problems so you look like you\u2019re in control)<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>(Shortform note: These behaviors are basically opposites of the authors\u2019 four steps to accountability: face facts, admit your role, take responsibility for solving the problem, and take action.)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>What is the victim mentality? How can you tell when someone&#8217;s actions stem from a place of victimhood? The victim mentality is the collection of beliefs, attitudes, and thinking patterns that emphasize your powerlessness in the face of circumstances and other people&#8217;s actions. In their book The Oz Principle, authors Craig Hickman, Roger Connors, and Tom Smith distinguish between two types of victim behavior: passivity and selfishness. In this article, we\u2019ll discuss what being a \u201cvictim\u201d means in the context of \u201cthe Oz Principle,\u201d and what the consequences of victimhood are.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":6414,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[9,43],"tags":[511],"class_list":["post-50938","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-psychology","category-self-improvement","tag-the-oz-principle","","tg-column-two"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v24.3 (Yoast SEO v24.3) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>The Oz Principle: Understanding the Victim Mentality - Shortform Books<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The victim mentality encompasses behaviors and thought patterns that keep you disempowered and unable to realize your potential. Read more.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/the-victim-mentality\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Oz Principle: Understanding the Victim Mentality\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The victim mentality encompasses behaviors and thought patterns that keep you disempowered and unable to realize your potential. Read more.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/the-victim-mentality\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Shortform Books\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2021-10-01T12:46:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2021-10-11T18:26:12+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/mindset-causes-bullying.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"930\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"584\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Darya Sinusoid\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Darya Sinusoid\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/the-victim-mentality\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/the-victim-mentality\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Darya Sinusoid\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/0421cce75bc249b11e2517b3a91f9c46\"},\"headline\":\"The Oz Principle: Understanding the Victim Mentality\",\"datePublished\":\"2021-10-01T12:46:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2021-10-11T18:26:12+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/the-victim-mentality\/\"},\"wordCount\":1083,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/the-victim-mentality\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/mindset-causes-bullying.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"The Oz Principle\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Psychology\",\"Self-Improvement\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/the-victim-mentality\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/the-victim-mentality\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/the-victim-mentality\/\",\"name\":\"The Oz Principle: Understanding the Victim Mentality - Shortform Books\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/the-victim-mentality\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/the-victim-mentality\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/mindset-causes-bullying.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2021-10-01T12:46:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2021-10-11T18:26:12+00:00\",\"description\":\"The victim mentality encompasses behaviors and thought patterns that keep you disempowered and unable to realize your potential. Read more.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/the-victim-mentality\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/the-victim-mentality\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/the-victim-mentality\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/mindset-causes-bullying.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/mindset-causes-bullying.jpg\",\"width\":930,\"height\":584},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/the-victim-mentality\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"The Oz Principle: Understanding the Victim Mentality\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/\",\"name\":\"Shortform Books\",\"description\":\"The World&#039;s Best Book Summaries\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Shortform Books\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/logo-equilateral-with-text-no-bg.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/logo-equilateral-with-text-no-bg.png\",\"width\":500,\"height\":74,\"caption\":\"Shortform Books\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/0421cce75bc249b11e2517b3a91f9c46\",\"name\":\"Darya Sinusoid\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/Untitled-design-1.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/Untitled-design-1.png\",\"caption\":\"Darya Sinusoid\"},\"description\":\"Darya\u2019s love for reading started with fantasy novels (The LOTR trilogy is still her all-time-favorite). Growing up, however, she found herself transitioning to non-fiction, psychological, and self-help books. She has a degree in Psychology and a deep passion for the subject. She likes reading research-informed books that distill the workings of the human brain\/mind\/consciousness and thinking of ways to apply the insights to her own life. Some of her favorites include Thinking, Fast and Slow, How We Decide, and The Wisdom of the Enneagram.\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/author\/darya\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"The Oz Principle: Understanding the Victim Mentality - Shortform Books","description":"The victim mentality encompasses behaviors and thought patterns that keep you disempowered and unable to realize your potential. Read more.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/the-victim-mentality\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"The Oz Principle: Understanding the Victim Mentality","og_description":"The victim mentality encompasses behaviors and thought patterns that keep you disempowered and unable to realize your potential. Read more.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/the-victim-mentality\/","og_site_name":"Shortform Books","article_published_time":"2021-10-01T12:46:00+00:00","article_modified_time":"2021-10-11T18:26:12+00:00","og_image":[{"width":930,"height":584,"url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/mindset-causes-bullying.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Darya Sinusoid","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Darya Sinusoid","Est. reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/the-victim-mentality\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/the-victim-mentality\/"},"author":{"name":"Darya Sinusoid","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/0421cce75bc249b11e2517b3a91f9c46"},"headline":"The Oz Principle: Understanding the Victim Mentality","datePublished":"2021-10-01T12:46:00+00:00","dateModified":"2021-10-11T18:26:12+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/the-victim-mentality\/"},"wordCount":1083,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/the-victim-mentality\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/mindset-causes-bullying.jpg","keywords":["The Oz Principle"],"articleSection":["Psychology","Self-Improvement"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/the-victim-mentality\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/the-victim-mentality\/","url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/the-victim-mentality\/","name":"The Oz Principle: Understanding the Victim Mentality - Shortform Books","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/the-victim-mentality\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/the-victim-mentality\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/mindset-causes-bullying.jpg","datePublished":"2021-10-01T12:46:00+00:00","dateModified":"2021-10-11T18:26:12+00:00","description":"The victim mentality encompasses behaviors and thought patterns that keep you disempowered and unable to realize your potential. Read more.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/the-victim-mentality\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/the-victim-mentality\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/the-victim-mentality\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/mindset-causes-bullying.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/mindset-causes-bullying.jpg","width":930,"height":584},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/the-victim-mentality\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"The Oz Principle: Understanding the Victim Mentality"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/","name":"Shortform Books","description":"The World&#039;s Best Book Summaries","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#organization","name":"Shortform Books","url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/logo-equilateral-with-text-no-bg.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/logo-equilateral-with-text-no-bg.png","width":500,"height":74,"caption":"Shortform Books"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/0421cce75bc249b11e2517b3a91f9c46","name":"Darya Sinusoid","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/Untitled-design-1.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/Untitled-design-1.png","caption":"Darya Sinusoid"},"description":"Darya\u2019s love for reading started with fantasy novels (The LOTR trilogy is still her all-time-favorite). Growing up, however, she found herself transitioning to non-fiction, psychological, and self-help books. She has a degree in Psychology and a deep passion for the subject. She likes reading research-informed books that distill the workings of the human brain\/mind\/consciousness and thinking of ways to apply the insights to her own life. Some of her favorites include Thinking, Fast and Slow, How We Decide, and The Wisdom of the Enneagram.","url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/author\/darya\/"}]}},"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/mindset-causes-bullying.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50938","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=50938"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50938\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":51209,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50938\/revisions\/51209"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6414"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=50938"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=50938"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=50938"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}