Always the victim
Every story ends with someone else at fault: the old boss, the ex, the market, the team that let them down.
Rule out first
Whether they really have been mistreated, repeatedly. Discrimination, illness or poverty that explain bad luck. A run of genuinely bad breaks.
What could explain it
Scapegoating: Others confirm it: the group really does pin things on them, and they're often the outsider.
Learned helplessness: Resigned, not angry: they've stopped trying, and the stories are about futility rather than villains.
Primary and secondary gain: Being the victim gets them something: sympathy, lighter duties, an excuse, a hold over others.
Vulnerable (covert) narcissism: Grievance mixed with entitlement: they feel special and unrecognised, and slights hurt more than they should.
Drama triangle (persecutor, victim, rescuer): They move between roles: victim one week, persecutor or rescuer the next, depending on who's in the scene.
Bad faith (Sartre): The story is always 'I had no choice' or 'that's just who I am'. Asked what would have happened if they'd done the other thing, there's a real option they preferred not to pay for.
A next move
Ask what they could do differently next time. A real answer means real misfortune; 'nothing would work' means helplessness; irritation at the question points to secondary gain or narcissism.
If it’s you
In my own stories, where am I always the one done to? What would the other people say?