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DOI of this issue: 10.54208/1000/00092
ISSN: 2710-401X (print) 2710-4028 (online)
Copyright 2026, International Journal of Coercion, Abuse, and Manipulation

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Vickie Howard, Amina Adan, Charles Attwood |Escaping the Narcissist’s Worldview
Escaping the Narcissist’s Worldview:
Assimilating Cult and Narcissistic Abuse Experiences
for the Identification of Deception Recovery
Vickie Howard,1 Amina Adan,2 Charles Attwood3
Abstract: Narcissistic abuse is an emerging area for psychological research, but in mental health and social care, it remains
an unacknowledged form of interpersonal abuse. This unacknowledged form results in a lack of assessment approaches and
identified therapeutic interventions, which consequently perpetuate social injustice for victim-survivors. The use of deception
is a specific feature of narcissistic abuse, and it has consequently harmful outcomes for those who experience this abuse. This
article advocates for recognition of psychological deception processes by narcissists in society, which research on narcissistically
abusive relationships in cults has already identified. This proposed theoretical extension has the potential to apply post-cult
recovery principles to the treatment approaches for narcissistic abuse victim-survivors. Research findings and victim-survivor
accounts in both society and cults advance theoretical and practice applications in responding to severe relational harm.
Our article concludes with advocating for further research to apply the outcomes from this theoretical exploration to clinical
research studies, in order to support real-world narcissistic abuse recovery.
Keywords: narcissistic abuse, deception. intimate partner violence, destructive cults
Declaration of Conflicting Interest: The authors declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the authorship
and publication of this article.
1 Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Dr. Vickie Howard, School of Psychology and Social Work, University of Hull. email:
V.Howard@hull.ac.uk. https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9513-0462
2 Dr Amina Adan (co-author), School of Childhood and Social Care, University of East London. https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4872-8132
3 Charles Attwood (co-author), Independent Scholar, Reading, Berkshire, UK, https://orcid.org/0009-0001-1230-1447
Introduction
Narcissistic abuse is an emerging research area, but
it remains a largely misunderstood and unrecognized
form of interpersonal and domestic/intimate partner
abuse. This form of abuse can include psychological,
emotional, physical, sexual, and financial violations
inflicted by someone deemed to have severe narcissistic
traits, or in psychiatric diagnostic terms, who may meet
the DSM-5-TR (American Psychiatric Association,
2022) criteria for narcissistic personality disorder. A
person victimized by these violations finds them to be
extremely debilitating, and recovery from them can
be complex. Often, a victim-survivor will experience
post-traumatic stress, a severe loss of sense of self,
marginalization, and isolation (Howard &Adan, 2022).
The terminology, however, of narcissistic abuse and its
features is still not universally recognized and assessed
in health and social care services (Howard 2019).
Frontline assessment professionals, including
psychologists, mental health practitioners, nurses,
doi: 10.54208/1000/00092/01
therapists, medical personnel, and social care
practitioners, could significantly influence care and
support approaches towards those who have experienced
narcissistic abuse. An in-depth comprehension of the
mental health difficulties impacting victim-survivors’
lives, experiences of distress, and social and cognitive
function could influence the care and support approach
offered by said professionals. By building research
evidence and outlining formulations of narcissistic
abuse, it will become increasingly recognized, as was
the case with coercive control (which shares some
features with narcissistic abuse and is now classified
as a criminal offence in the United Kingdom [Crown
Prosecution Service, 2023]).
Although severe narcissism presents as narcissistic
personality disorder through psychiatric diagnostic
criteria (American Psychiatric Association, 2022) and
identifies interpersonal harm as a distinguishing feature,
those who suffer the harm do not have a diagnostic
classification devoted to them or a comprehensive
recognition of their treatment and support needs. The