Traumatic Bonding In Intimate Relationships

Traumatic Bonding In Intimate Relationships An unfortunate part of reality is that there are people who remain in unhealthy and abusive relationships despite being constantly hurt by their partners. What makes a seemingly rational person maintain such a dysfunctional scenario? Research into this topic shows that reasons can range from internal to the victim (e.g. childhood experiences and personality) to external to the individual (e.g. culture and family). This paper will attempt to answer this question through an analysis of past research relating to common characteristics observed in the victims of abusive relationships, as well as common qualities of the aggressors. Finally, it will introduce some of the environmental and contextual …show more content…
For example, one study was able to demonstrate a significant relationship between abusive personality, abusive behaviour and childhood memories of parental treatment (Dutton, Starzomski, & Ryan, 1996). Specifically, they found that an abusive personality was significantly correlated with the amount of violence that a person experienced in their childhood home and the level of rejection that they experienced from their primary caregiver. Similarly, a 12-year long longitudinal study, looking at the effect of childhood abuse on the likelihood of committing abuse as an adult, looked at 224 adults who were abused as children and found that 12% of them became abusive as adults (Salter et al., 2003). While this finding is in fact lower than the findings of other studies in this area, the authors suggest that it is unknown how many, if any, of those who did not become abusive would become abusive after the study was over. Being that exposure to domestic violence in childhood does not, in itself, dictate whether a person is likely to become the abused or the abuser, I will shed more light into what factors might influence whether someone is more likely to become an aggressor or a victim in an abusive relationship in the following …show more content…
On one hand, attachment to a person more powerful than oneself can enhance self-image and feelings of personal power (Becker, 1973), but overtime the effects of these power imbalances can become even more pronounced. The Stanford Prison experiment demonstrated how, in just four days, some of the volunteers playing the role of prisoners reported anxiety and depression as a result of their powerlessness in relation to those participants who played guards (Zimbardo, Haney, Banks, & Jaffe, 1972). So even though there might be evidence of some short-term benefits, term increased levels of negative self-appraisals are more likely to take place over the long. Power imbalance can come in many different forms. In a study of 101 female victims of abuse, 43% were employed outside of the home and the majority of those women were working in clerical, technical or unskilled jobs and earning between $6,00 and $9,000 per year (Benton, 1986). The authors of this study suggest that these findings indicate that financial dependence, little education and lack of employment can all play a significant role in determining the likelihood of someone leaving an abusive relationship and these factors can influence this decision even in those victims who are middle-to-upper

Show More

Essay about Domestic Violence

Quiz study guide Essay

TAIT Article Essay

Traumatic Bonding In Intimate Relationships

Related Documents: Traumatic Bonding In Intimate Relationships

Essay about Domestic Violence

Quiz study guide Essay

TAIT Article Essay