Guilt can be a positive emotion, but it's also often used as a tool to control or manipulate.
6 Min Read
Contents
“I really hate baseball, but it’s important to Derek that we go to the game together.”
At first glance you may think this is a statement of loving compromise made by a wife to spend time with her husband. But once you know more you’ll realize this is actually a sign of emotional manipulation in a marriage.
Emotional manipulation in marriage can be hard to see because those who use it are often quite adept at disguising it.
Many spouses who are the victims of emotional manipulation in their marriage believe even if they’re unhappy or doing things they don’t really want to, they’re doing it for the greater good and because they love their spouse.
Let’s read the rest of her statement.
“I really hate baseball, but it was important to Derek that we go to the game together . . . So, I cancelled my plans with my girlfriends because he said he’d be hurt if I didn’t go with him.”
Do you see it now?
If you’re saying,
“Eh, maybe. But I still think she’s just being a nice wife,” then let’s look at emotional manipulation in greater depth.
In order to recognize emotional manipulation, you first need to understand what it is. Many assume they’d know it if it were happening to them and that it only happens in troubled, unhappy marriages.
Those things are true sometimes, but they aren’t always a given.
Emotional manipulation in a marriage occurs when someone attempts to sway their partner’s,
by leveraging their love and loyalty.
It’s generally covert, and the manipulated partner may even feel they’re doing things and making choices without being influenced.
Manipulation in a marriage weaponizes the love between spouses, their lifestyle, and sometimes even their children.
Whatever aspect is being used, the ultimate goal for the manipulation is to get their way or control their partner.
Neither of these things are healthy or appropriate.
Emotional manipulation in a marriage can go unchecked for a long time. This happens because partners haven’t recognized the signs of manipulation, or they don’t understand why things should be different.
Consider Derek’s wife. She doesn’t like baseball and had plans with friends. But Derek made it sound like spending time with her and sharing something he loved was so important that she’s not only doing something she doesn’t enjoy, but she’s also giving up something she does enjoy.
All for him.
She was manipulated. How?
Derek made her feel that if she did not spend time with him she didn’t really love him (i.e. he manipulated her to control her behavior and get what he wanted).
Of course, in that moment it didn’t feel like manipulation. In fact, she may have felt flattered that her husband wanted to be with her.
This is just one example of how emotional manipulation can be disguised as love.
So, if it’s that tough to see, how do you know if you’re indeed being emotionally manipulated?
Below are some of the signs:
Marriage should be a partnership. If your spouse makes you feel like you owe them and holds things over you to get what they want, it’s manipulation.
Perhaps they make you feel like you owe them because they’re the primary income earner, because they’re the main caretaker of the kids, or even because they agreed to go to a restaurant you wanted to try.
Whatever it is, being made to feel like you “owe” them is a sign of being manipulated.
If there's a spoken or unspoken “if you loved me you would” vibe in your relationship there’s a problem.
Your spouse shouldn’t ask you to prove your love.
If your spouse makes you feel good about yourself because they’re supportive and your biggest fan, that’s fantastic.
But, if they control your self-confidence and self-esteem by undermining you and criticizing to the point that your feelings of worth rise and fall according to their praise or critiques, you’re being emotionally manipulated.
Guilt as a means for controlling someone’s behavior is often a manipulative partner’s go-to.
Sacrificing your happiness for someone else can seem very noble and selfless. But if that’s the regular dynamic in your marriage it’s unhealthy.
These are all examples of passive-aggressive behavior, which is a common tool of emotional manipulators.
An emotionally manipulative spouse strives to maintain control over their partner.
They often slowly drive a wedge between you and your friends and family.
By reducing your independence and autonomy they control you.
Conditional love isn’t healthy love. If your spouse makes you feel like you have to meet certain criteria for them to love you, you’re dealing with emotional manipulation.
You’re the only one making compromises or giving things up.
This isn’t a complete list of the signs of emotional manipulation in marriage, but they are some of the most common.
It’s important to understand that all these signs have gradations to them. In some relationships certain behaviors may be more extreme than in others.
It’s also not necessary for all these signs and behaviors to be present for emotional manipulation to be a factor in your marriage.
Emotional manipulation in marriage can very easily and very quickly rise to the level of emotional abuse.
No partner should have power over the other or put them in a situation where they feel like they have to do things they don’t want to.
Hearing the word manipulation can immediately make you think the manipulator is bad, cruel, a malignant narcissist, or doesn’t really love their partner. Those things aren’t always true, however.
Manipulative behavior should never be accepted or normalized, but it’s possible for a person to behave in manipulative ways without realizing it or truly feel like it’s out of love.
That doesn’t make it acceptable, but it might mean that it stops short of being categorized as abusive.
Let’s consider Derek again. We don’t know enough to determine his real intention or to know if the behavior in the relationship has become extreme.
But is it possible that he really wanted to spend time with his wife?
Yes.
Is it possible that he truly loves her and doesn’t understand that his behavior is selfish and manipulative?
Yes.
Does this make it ok?
No.
Derek’s behavior is still manipulative, but whether it’s abusive would take more information to determine.
Dr. Kurt counsels couples dealing with emotional manipulation in their marriage. He’s also seen how things can become abusive.
According to him,
It's really hard to see, and especially admit, that your partner is abusive. Our desire to be loved by them can be so strong that it can blind us from seeing unloving behavior. And because emotional manipulation can be so subtle, and we want to believe the best about our spouse, recognizing it in a marriage is hard. Usually partners have a sense, their gut tells them something doesn't seem right, but they dismiss, ignore, or bury that feeling. Don't. In my counseling I'm regularly stopping partners while they're describing an event and pointing out to them that it's abuse. They're almost always surprised, but as we discuss why they usually acknowledge they had a sense something was off. Trust your gut – one of the symptoms of abuse is not trusting yourself anymore."
Recognizing emotional manipulation in marriage is one thing – stopping it is quite another.
Putting an end to emotional manipulation in your marriage will require a few things.
Simple, right?
Sadly, no – not simple at all.
Manipulative spouses rarely own up to their behavior right away. Many don’t understand why it’s unhealthy or inappropriate. And many spouses who are being manipulated struggle with having the strength and self-esteem to push back and set and maintain the needed boundaries.
When this is the case, outside support may be needed. Marriage counseling or individual counseling if the manipulative partner refuses to go, can be very beneficial.
Whether it can be considered abuse or is well-intentioned at its root, emotional manipulation has no place in a healthy marriage.
It should also be noted that emotional manipulation doesn’t only occur in marriage. Any close relationship can be affected by manipulation, including friendships and parent-child relationships.
It doesn't matter what type of relationship it is – manipulation doesn’t have a place in it.
Just because emotional manipulation in marriage is tricky doesn’t mean it can’t be fixed, however. Your best bet for making the necessary changes is to insist on changes as soon as you’ve recognized what’s really happening.
Editor's Note: This post was originally published May 5, 2022, and has been updated with new information for accuracy and comprehensiveness.
Guilt can be a positive emotion, but it's also often used as a tool to control or manipulate.
Guilt is a powerful emotion and not always a bad one. It can nudge us to do better, apologize when we’re wrong, and keep us from being deceptive. But when guilt is used as a tool to control or shame someone, or to maintain the upper hand in a relationship, it becomes dangerous and detrimental to emotional health.
Want to know what Abusive Women are really like? Take a look at 7 behaviors used by Women who are Abusive. Read quotes from Women who Abuse and partners.
© 2026 Guy Stuff Counseling & Coaching, APC, All Rights Reserved.
Privacy Policy | Sitemap | Do Not Sell or Share My Information
Featured logos are trademarks of their respective owners.
Thanks for the insight on this topic
Hubby decided after I told him I was leaving to install an "expensive " item that he had promised 10 years ago -have I been manipulated ??