Manipuloidaan

Manipuloidaan is the Finnish passive present tense form of the verb manipuloida. It describes a situation in which a person or a group is being influenced or controlled, often through strategies that may be subtle or coercive. While manipuloida can also denote skilful handling of a task, the passive form often refers to influencing people, information, or outcomes. The concept is widely discussed in contexts such as psychology, media studies, politics, and interpersonal relationships.

Finnish uses the passive construction here to omit the agent. The agent may be introduced with a phrase such as "jonkun toimesta" (by someone) or "joku" (someone), but many sentences leave the doer unspecified. For example, "Tietoa manipuloidaan mediassa" means "Information is manipulated in the media." The subject of the action is the thing being manipulated, not the agent performing it.

Usage and nuance: manipulointi can carry pejorative connotations, signaling unethical or deceptive tactics, while in some contexts it may simply refer to strategic influence. The form manipuloidaan is common in journalism, academic discussion, psychology, and everyday speech when describing processes where influence is exerted on opinions, beliefs, or behavior.

Origin and cognates: the verb is a loanword built on the noun manipulaatio/manipulointi, reflecting the broader concept of manipulation. It is cognate with English manipulate and Swedish manipulera, and has been integrated into Finnish to describe both everyday and formal notions of influencing or controlling others or circumstances.