The term mind games refers to passive agressive behavior used specifically to demoralize the subject while making the aggressor look superior.

The psychological field of transactional analysis, describe and examine mind games from a social and psychological perspective. Broadly the term can be used for any strategy or tactic where covert mental manipulation or creation of coercive pressure of another person is a goal.

"I knew how easy it was to make people believe a lie, but I didn't expect the same people, confronted with the lie, would choose it over the truth. ... No amount of logic can shatter a faith consciously based on a lie."
Lamar Keene

True-believer syndrome is a term used to refer to people who continue to believe in a paranormal event or phenomenon even after it had been proven to have been staged.