In most relationships, women have more power than men.

A typical woman controls the relationship becoming the prize, setting a “provider frame” for him, and then rewarding (or punishing) him emotionally to keep him in line (emotional control).

In this article, you will learn exactly how women control men, and what you can do to break free of that control.

How Women Domesticate Men

In most relationships, it’s women who are the leaders.

They take charge and subjugate men by taking the judge role in the relationship.

What does that mean?

It means that they take control of the frame of reference on what’s good or wrong, what’s proper or improper, and what are the standards of behavior.

Men rarely challenge her frame, which basically means: they end up playing by her rules.

And to enforce her frame of reference in day-to-day life, she uses the following compliance tools:

1. Drama & nagging (set the priorities of what’s important)
2. Blaming & criticism (browbeats him on the defensive)
3. Shaming (the compliance superpower)

With these three tools, she becomes the relationship leader, which allows her to:

• Task him (so he can provide for her and make her happy)

Let’s see exactly how that happens:

1. Drama & Nagging

Drama and nagging are compliance and behavioral-changing tools for women.

In Brief:

1.2. Nagging

Nagging is a long-term, semi-permanent behavioral changing tool.

It works in part through conditioning of reward and punishments (behaviorism): do what I like, and you make me happy (and maybe get the cookie); don’t do what I like, and you fall from my grace and get my nagging wrath (negative reinforcement).

I quote clinical psychologists and Ph.D. Harriet Braiker (a woman, BTW) verbatim here (Braiker, 2003):

Nagging is the human equivalent of shock grids to the rat.

Eventually, he internalizes the rules.
When that happens, nagging puts a “voice” in his head that makes him feel in the wrong when he doesn’t follow the rules –her rules-.
And, eventually, he does follow her rules:

Him: for years now she has insisted that I sit when I urinate (video of him sitting to urinate)

Nagging sets the priority of what’s important. It says “change who you are”.
Just like water molds rock over the years, so long-term nagging is low-intensity pressure that, over time, sculpts the man just like she wants him.

1.3. Drama

While nagging is a long-term behavioral modification tool, drama is a concentrated, focused, laser beam compliance tool.
If nagging sets the priorities of what’s important, drama sets the priorities of what’s urgent.

Nagging says “you’re not OK”, while drama says “what you are doing right now is not OK, move your ass now to change it”.

Here is a drama example:

Her: (emotional, yelling, shoving him) Hooooneey, go, do something (points towards where he needs to go)! Harry! Hurry!
Him: (gets up and takes action)
Her: (keeps the pressure high with high emotions and directs his behavior)

The secret of drama is emotions.
Women put a lot of emotions and passion into drama, and deliver it with a self-righteous attitude that screams “I’m right”.
Since men do not engage in drama and are not used to that over-emotional (and aggressive) type of communication, it’s even more effective in short-circuiting their brains so that they end up treating it as a real emergency.
And they fail to see it for what it is: a compliance tool.

If you’re a guy reading and have been in a few relationships, just think about it: how often have you challenged her drama?
If you’re like most guys, rarely. Very rarely.

Most men take ownership of her drama and make it their top priority to fix it.

1.4. Nagging & Drama = Judge Power Tools

Both nagging and drama are punishment and compliance tools of the judge’s power position.

They both say say “you are not doing your job” and “you are not being good enough”.
She (unconsciously) uses them to mold him to her liking.

2. Blaming & Criticism

Blaming and criticism are verbal aggression tools.

Most men, unaware of power dynamics, defend themselves when they’re blamed and criticized.

And here is what he sub-communicates when he defends:

1. Admits guilt
2. Confirm she’s in charge
3. Confirm he must serve her and make her happy

Most men, too dumbfounded by her attacks and emotional outbursts, react the following way when their women lash out at them:

1. Get defensive (bad)
2. Make excuses (terrible)
3. Try to fix the issue (bad: it doesn’t address the real issue, which is the aggressive delivery)
4. Fight her (so-so, it looks over-reactive and doesn’t work when he’s wrong)
5. Ask her to calm down (bad)
6. Tries to understand the real issue (works on some instances, but doesn’t address the blaming issue)

Trying to understand and uncover the real issue behind the complaint goes to the root of the problem.
It’s something that relationship researcher Gottman calls “looking beyond the complaint”, and it works.
But that’s exactly the major flaw of this solution.
Gottman is an outstanding researcher on relationships, but not necessarily on power dynamics.

The real issue indeed here is this: she is using verbal abuse and verbally coercive tactics to make him fall in line.
And that’s what a man should address first: the way she approaches the issue -and only after he can deal with the issue-.

Imagine the following:

(Enters back home, places 2 heavy bags of groceries on the kitchen table)
Him: here is the shopping, help me store it
(She starts going through the bags)
Her: OMG where is the cheese! Didn’t I tell you this morning to get the cheese? I can’t believe you forgot it, it was such a simple task! How am I going to prepare pasta now without the cheese! You always do this!

Since he indeed made a mistake, men often end up on the defensive there.
But the problem with defending is that he does not address the real issue, which is not the small mishap, but her aggressive tone.
Even more importantly, it confirms her frame of power: that he must serve her and execute her tasks (and do so properly).
Cherry on the pie, that’s a nasty and aggressive way of communicating and it does nothing good to the relationship.

How to Deal With Blaming

Here is how you handle blaming instead:

Her: OMG where is the cheese!
Didn’t I tell you this morning to get the cheese? I can’t believe you forgot it, it was such a simple task! How am I going to prepare pasta now without the cheese! You always do this!
(pause a few seconds, look at her)
You: I am not comfortable with your tone

You don’t address the perfunctory cheese issue but, calm and collected, you go to the crux of the matter.

Her: What do you mean my tone, what are you talking about, you didn’t buy the cheese!
You: That is the case indeed. I forgot the cheese. But how does that give you the right to raise your voice and verbally assault me

By admitting that you did indeed make a mistake you protect yourself from further attacks.
And by making your criticism more specific -and more emotionally charged- you are now playing the same game and backing her against the corner.

Her: Assaulting you? I’m not assaulting you! I’m just saying you forgot the cheese, how can I cook pasta now
You: You are yelling at me with an aggressive facial expression for what’s a very, very minor issue. That’s verbal abuse in my book

As soon as you get her to admit that she overreacted and/or that aggression is not the way to deal with issues, you want to say something like this:

You: Look, I did forget the cheese, my bad.
But to me it’s more important how we deal with issues. Because cheeses come and go, but how we deal with each other stays.
And blaming, yelling, finger pointing and any other nasty way of communicating are not what I consider good and healthy relationships.
And I want to have a healthy and respectful relationship with you because that’s how I treat you and I expect the same back.
(pause)
Do I make myself clear?

With that, you addressed the power dynamics: you are not a punching bag for her anger.

Now you can move to the root causes of this particular issue.

To get to the root causes of a situation like this, think about your priorities.
And if you realize that you don’t care about cheese and you don’t want to spend your life shopping for cheese, then assign the task of what it’s important to her back to her.
Tell her candidly that since you don’t care about cheese, you will probably forget again in the future. And you will not take any responsibility for stocking up on cheese ever again.
From then on, what she cares about is what she takes responsibility for.

3. Shaming

Shame is the superpower of the judge’s role.

Shame is a tool for psychological aggression and compliance.
Researcher Brene Brown says that shame leverages our need to be worthy of love and basic respect. Shame punishes us with scorn, isolation, and stoking feelings of unworthiness.

When women use shame in a relationship, they attack something that every man feels deeply inside:  what it (supposedly) means to be a man.
Some of the most powerful attacks on manhood are:

• Unsuccessful
• Weak
• Impotent
• “Pussy”

Here is an example of a woman, actually jealous, who wanted to hurt him and chooses “weak” as her weapon of choice:

Her: (shaking her head in judgmental attitude) Oh, Jesus Christ, David! Is she one of yours?
Him: It was Berlin
Her: (Sarcastic) Oooooh great. Oh that’s great (…) A power differential equals coercion. You’re so weak!

The power of shame is compounded when, as it’s often the case, the whole society stands behind the accusation -ie.: the whole society takes the judge’s position against him-.
This is the case for weakness for example, as a man is not supposed to be weak. But it’s also the case of providing for the family or protecting women.
Men internalize those values and beliefs, which allow women to push their manhood thumbscrews without even having to be too direct.

In relationships women can leverage shame to cage men into provider roles, potentially sabotaging their own goals and dream.
Here is an example:

Her: And he said, I’m not gonna look for a job, I’m going into the restaurant business (…) I looked at him and I said “you get your butt back to that job, and you pay the mortgage”

She says it was fear that pushed her to corner him. Maybe. But also female pragmatism and domestication instincts, leveraging shame.
She didn’t even need to say “you’re not a real man if you don’t provide”. That was implied: he already had internalized that rule from society.

In some cases, it might be argued that it’s fair to shame some men: for example, if children who need to be fed are involved. And some men might even deserve some shaming.
In that case, fair game.

However, women will often take an attitude that enlarges the scope of “what it means to be a man” to fit what they want and need.
So shaming becomes:

Her: I’m unhappy. Make me happy (or you’re not a real man)
You: OK, let me try some monkey dancing

Her: Protect me and make me feel safe. Buy a house in the good part of town (or you’re not a real man)
You: OK, working hard on that promotion…

Her: Make me come (or you’re not a real man)
You: OK, lemme learn how to last longer so I can make you happier…

Notice that none of the above are wrong per se.
But they do are unhealthy and manipulative when they are not part of a balanced relationship of give and take.

So here is an example for you.

I love Tom Bylieu and he is one of the few motivational speakers I recommend people to follow.
I use this example though to show how his wife used shaming to corner him into being a better provider (taken from his interview with Tony Robbins):

Tom: I want to walk away from all this work I hate, it’s destroying me
Wife: I bet on you (= I bet on you to provide for me, don’t disappoint me!)
Tom: She bet on my relentlessness, so I had to find a way (to make money and make her wealthy)

Notice what his wife told him when he was tired of chasing money: “I bet on you”.
That’s shaming for not keeping his word (a purely male thing BTW: women don’t care nearly as much). And shaming for not providing for her.
And immediately he toes the line again to chase money for her.

I’d like to stress again that Tom is an amazing fella, and there is nothing inherently wrong with being a provider.
Being a high-quality provider in a healthy relationship does more good to society than being a player.

BUT…

There is a big difference between a high-quality provider, leader of the relationship, and overall high-quality man who chooses to provide for a kind woman, and a submissive guy (or a clueless guy who is being manipulated).

How to Deal With Shaming

Female shaming enlarges the scope of “what it means to be a real man” to serve them.

So if you want to throw off the yoke, either have your own definition… OR completely discard the whole notion of “being a real man”.

4. Tasking

Tasking is at the core of how women control their men.

Drama, criticism, and nagging are the support tools to make sure that he will follow through on the tasks she deems important.

Many women will start tasking early on to test his mettle.
The more he executes her tasks, the more likely it is he will commit and invest. Thus, tasking also works early on as her screening tool for providers.

It can start innocently enough.
Like you are at the bar and she tells you to go get her napkins so she can enjoy her cappuccino -and whatever if you are also enjoying your cappuccino-.

Or maybe you two are shopping and she hands you the cart telling you “hold this”.

Or it can take a while longer.
If you seem strong, independent, and rebellious enough sometimes tasking and shaming only start in earnest when you fully commit to the relationship.

It might be surprising for some men to see their women’s demands increase dramatically when they pass a major commitment point such as “exclusivity”, “official status” or “marriage”.

What happens is that you were in charge in the beginning and she didn’t dare to take a judge position on you. Plus, you probably rebuked a few attempts at drama and tasking.
But that doesn’t mean she will stop trying to domesticate you. It simply means that the process is on hold.
Until when?
Until her power increases, which can happen after a key milestone such as commitment (see: relationship phases of power).

Some men, like the super-rich, extreme lover-types, and sky-high sexual market value, might never reach the point of tasking.
But 99% will.
So buckle up.

Here is an example of tasking + nagging during an argument.

Most of all, notice how her attitude, and how hard for him it is to resist.
Her conviction and righteous attitude make her frame iron-solid, and it feels as if it’s a foregone conclusion that she is right and he is wrong.

It ends up looking like a mother/child dynamic, with the mother “knowing” what’s right to do and the man being the rebellious kid not living up to her righteous expectations:

Her: (high emotions, dramatic approach) I went to the market, I cleaned this entire condo, and I’ve been cooking for the last three hours. Come on, help set the table
Him: Don’t you wanna finish it yourself?
Her: Set the table!

He seems strong and independent, but he is not.

He is reacting to her orders instead of the way she commands him, which escalates the argument in the wrong direction.
He should instead escalate the way she bosses him around. After he dealt with her aggression, he should then do the table his way if he promised. If not, he should get up in earnest and have an eye-to-eye conversation as “who wanted to organize the dinner”.
And if it was her, then he should tell her it’s her task -or, tell her he wants to help because he’s happy if she’s happy… As long as she learns to ask nicely and respectfully-.

The more he executes tasks, the more it becomes the norm

Cognitive dissonance (Festinger, 1957) dictates that the more he executes her tasks, the more he will internalize that it’s the right thing to do.

And through back-rationalization (Eagleman, 2011), the more he executes, the more likely it is that he will rationalize his actions by telling himself that “she must be worth it”.
So, with tasks, she is also increasing her power and more effectively framing herself as “the prize” of the relationship.

How to Deal With Tasking

Here is how to deal with tasking:

• Think about what you can and cannot do

You’re not a boy anymore, and you should not aim to be one.
If you want a relationship, then you do need to change some of your habits, commit to something and compromise on something else.
But that doesn’t mean you should do all she wants you to do.
Think of what you can and cannot do, and make it clear. Communicate it well and assertively enforce your boundaries. Drama, nagging, and tasking will drop to (near) zero.

• Return to sender all her tasks

As we have seen for blaming, we now come full circle: all the tasks that are dear to her, but not to you, are her tasks.
You can approach it this way:

You: Wait a second. Do I want cheese on the pasta, or do you want cheese pasta? Because as far as I know, you want cheese on the pasta.
So why are you asking me to take care of it?

Basically, it’s this: do what you agreed on and ask her to do her own tasks. Then enforce those boundaries when she tries to unload her stuff on you.

Read more on tasking and execution strategies:

10 Ways to Maintain Power When Executing Orders

Tasking + Drama + Shaming = Trapped

When a man resists or is slow in taking action, a woman can combine all the tools at once:

1. Drama, to make the action seem more urgent and important
2. Shame, in the sense of “do something (or you’re not a real man)”
3. Tasking: go do it for f*ck sake!

The previous example we saw was a good example of this deadly female power cocktail:

Her: (emotional, yelling, shoving him) Hooooneey, go, do something (points towards where he needs to go)! Harry! Hurry!
Him: (gets up and takes action)
Her: (keeps the pressure high with high emotions and directs his behavior)

Notice that drama in itself often includes shaming without needing any overt dig at masculinity.
This is because most men feel responsible for making her happy. They feel that “doing” things is their job. Even when “doing things” actually means “doing things for her“.
Not doing it, especially when she’s all emotional, is shameful for men. And women (unconsciously) leverage that.

Why do Women Seek to Control Men?

The question comes naturally to any inquisitive mind.

Why do women work so hard to control men and take the reins of the relationship?

It all goes back to biology, evolution, and male parental investment.
It’s a complex issue, but we’ll make it as brief as possible.

Male parental investment is the measure of how much males invest in their offspring.

Matt Ridley explains that in species where the male does not invest at all, the female-only cares about his genes -partially conveyed by his looks-. She does not care about his resources, fidelity, or investment because she knows she can’t get them anyway.

In the animal kingdom, human men are in the middle of male parental investment. That means, in practice, that men invest in their children, but not always, and not as much as women.

So here is why women want to control men: women seek to control men because they can get resources from them, but since not all men will do so, women need to make sure their partners will help and provide.

We can speculate -remember: evolutionary psychology is sometimes speculative- that women who were able to better control men’s resources and investment have been more successful over evolutionary time, had more children who survived and thrived and spread their “controlling genes” far and wide.

And that’s why women’s techniques of compliance and control are today the norm, rather than the exception.

And even leaving evolutionary arguments aside, isn’t it just a more comfortable life for a rational female if she can control his man?
Of course, it is.

A domesticated man makes for better-fed children and for an easier life.
In the end, a woman’s work on a man is an act of domestication. He goes from free-grazing wild beast to cart-pulling ox.
Her cart, of course :).

Relationship Prize Female Game

Female domestication works even better when she positions herself as the prize of the relationship.

Then, he will feel like providing is mandatory because he has to make up for the value imbalance between him and her -and that he’s lucky to have a prize like her-.

How can women become the prize?

If you ask most men, none of them would tell you they’re OK with pedestalizing her.
But in spite of many men resent subordination with words, they often go along with it with facts.

Why do so many men end up accepting the female’s frame as the prize of the relationship?

Power dynamics help us understand why:

• Most women have more dating power than most men

It’s actually relatively easy and natural for many women to frame themselves as the prize.

In spite of hypergamy, couples often get together at around the same levels of value –some exceptions apply, as usual-.
But since in the sexual marketplace, women are the demand and men are the offers, women tend to have more power.

• Men chase, women assess

Dating dynamics also help women become the prize.

Men do all the approaching while women just send out the signals and assess those men (see: shit tests).
The prey-hunter dynamic of dating further warps men’s mindset, who feel lucky and blessed once they can finally stop chasing.

Thus, when men finally enter the relationship, they are already primed for accepting women’s demands: they got the prize. Now they must keep her happy.

• Many men feel a duty to provide and make her happy

More than one psychologist correctly pointed out that many men have an inborn drive to be defenders and providers (Smith, 2014 Miller, 2015).

Some men only feel fulfilled if they can be effective providers.

And if those drives aren’t strong enough, society is happy to reinforce males’ “duty” as providers -and shame men who don’t provide-.

That’s why men can easily be made to feel bad and guilty if they are not making their women happy.

And of course, some women are all the happier to take advantage of men’s feelings of duty.

Learning Power Dynamics

Learning power dynamics is a must for healthy, win-win relationships.

If men don’t learn power dynamics and relationship power dynamics, some women will be more than happy to set up win-lose relationships.

Instead, a savvy and strong male leader who can spot power games and handle them for win-win results leads to healthier dating and better relationships for both.

Also, see:

• Nasty power moves: win-lose games in dating
• How to maintain power and attraction: in LTRs

As well as:

• “I’m the prize power move” (pictorial)

This video is a shorter version of the article:

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This is an excerpt from Power University