There is no single definition of what "soul" is. Some people use the word metaphorically, to refer to their emotional responses, in which case they are not necessarily envisaging an actual corresponding entity. As there is no empirical evidence for the existence of such a thing as a soul, nobody is really in any position to challenge anyone else's definition.
It's easier to spot from the perspective of an outsider, looking at someone else's relationships. When it happens to ourselvelves, it quite often creeps up gradually without us noticing. By the time we recognize it, our level of involvement with the perpetrator can make it hard to just walk away from. It depends how vigilant we are, I suppose, and whether we have been in that situation before.
If we take a look at ourselves every now and then, and try to correct those "imperfections", that's probably the best we can do. I might even have a go at that, myself.
When we read something like that, the first impulse is to wonder if we can apply it to anyone we know. But how many of us wonder how much of it we can apply to ourselves.
RE: Face nappies, muzzles, submission and an end to job security
So you favour the Chinese method of dealing with political opponents rather than the old Soviet one?