What is the Karpman drama triangle?

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What is the Karpman Drama Triangle?
Thanks for asking.
American psychiatrist Stephen Karpman put forward his social model of human interaction in 1968 It describes the roles that we take on in unbalanced social relations. Relationships which lead us to take one of three roles within the Karpman Drama Triangle. What are those roles then? Victim, persecutor and savior. And what's more, the role that we take on unconsciously leads someone else to take on one of the others. Let's take the role of the victim for example. If I put myself in a situation as a victim, I'm going to tend to blame my hardships on a persecutor who I consider responsible for my misfortune or pain.
Like a colleague stopping me from flourishing at work, let's say. I'm pretty much assigning that person the role of persecutor. At the same time, the victim may feel that someone else has the potential to make them happy and help them get over all these difficulties. It may be a friend or partner for example. Without meaning to, the victim designates a savior in whom they place all their hope. What about the other two then? The persecutor represents the person who thinks they know better than everyone else. They'll want to make decisions on their behalf or simply force their choices upon the other person. It could be an abusive parent, an ill-intended husband or a violent friend. These people tend to blame those close to them for pretty much everything and build up a need to be in control. It's often adults whose childhoods were filled with frustration. What's the point of this whole theory? The Karpman drama triangle detangles conflictual relationships and cases of manipulation, but it's important to note that when we take on a certain role, it's also because we get hidden benefits from it. The saviour may tire of taking care of someone playing the victim, but deep down it feeds their ego. Or maybe addressing another person's problems means they don't have to address their own, meanwhile the victim gets a hidden benefit too. Putting the blame on someone else means they can completely ditch their own responsibilities. By the way, Karpman pointed out that the persecutor doesn't always have to be a person. Sometimes the source of all problems can be an illness or addiction for example. How does one escape from this infuriating triangle then?
First of all, you need to realise that you're taking on a role. Which role that is and what benefit you're getting. If you're the persecutor, you may learn to accept the victim as they are. First, accepting yourself despite any deep lying frustrations. It's in the victim's interest to understand why they're letting someone or something else make decisions instead of them. And finally, the saviour may ask themself what's causing them to give so much. Is it to feel needed or perhaps to get something in return? It's really on a case by case basis.
There you have it.
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