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@ Tim Bouma
2025-05-16 11:44:41
Digital Münchausen by Proxy (DMBP)
Definition:
Digital Münchausen by Proxy is a hypothetical psychological condition in which a digital service provider deliberately exaggerates, fabricates, or dramatizes the suffering or vulnerability of a user or client in online settings, in order to gain attention, praise, or professional validation.
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Key Characteristics:
• Embellished storytelling: The provider shares overly dramatic or false accounts of a user’s situation—such as illness, trauma, crisis, or progress—without consent or with distorted facts.
• Performative care: Posts or content are framed to showcase the provider’s role as heroic, compassionate, or indispensable, with the user’s experience serving primarily as narrative fuel.
• Validation-seeking behavior: These narratives are often used to attract followers, build a professional brand, or gain credibility within online communities or institutions.
• Exploitation of digital platforms: Platforms like social media, blogs, or forums are used to publicly frame the provider as an advocate or savior, while minimizing the user’s actual voice or autonomy.
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Motivations:
• Desire for recognition, status, or admiration.
• Underlying narcissistic or factitious tendencies.
• Emotional gratification from being perceived as a rescuer or expert.
• Professional or commercial gain via audience-building or self-promotion.
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Potential Harms:
• Violation of user trust, privacy, and consent.
• Distress or disempowerment for users whose experiences are misrepresented.
• Damage to professional integrity and ethical boundaries.
• Loss of trust in legitimate service relationships and online support spaces.
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Hypothetical Example:
A digital service provider shares a LinkedIn post about a “deeply traumatized user” they helped “pull back from the edge,” presenting themselves as an exceptional figure of care—despite the user’s condition being misrepresented or the story being exaggerated without consent.
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Addressing the Behavior:
• Ethics training and professional accountability for digital service providers.
• Therapeutic support to address underlying psychological drivers.
• Clearer platform policies and community standards regarding user representation and consent.
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Conclusion:
In this form of Digital Münchausen by Proxy, the user becomes a tool for emotional or professional gain, and the provider’s identity is built on borrowed or distorted experiences. It reflects the darker side of digital care culture, where empathy is publicly performed rather than privately practiced.