Psychological Abuse

ABSTRACT The association between childhood emotional maltreatment (CEM) and aggression is an empirically and theoretically supported finding. Both early maladaptive schema (EMS) domains and difficulties in emotion regulation (DER) have been examined as mediators on this relationship in the literature. However, past research has not evaluated the roles of EMS domains and DER simultaneously on the relationship between CEM and aggression. In an attempt to fill this gap in the literature, we conducted this study in Turkey to examine EMS domains and DER together as the mediators in the relationship between CEM and aggression in adulthood. The sample consisted of 291 participants (nfemale = 204; nmale = 87). The mean age was 22.96 years (SD = 5.62). All variables were assessed via self-report questionnaires. Mediation analyses were conducted via PROCESS and INDIRECT macro. Findings indicated that disconnection, unrelenting standards and impaired autonomy schema domains, and DER total score and the impulse subscale score mediated the relationship between CEM and aggression in adulthood. The current findings draw attention to EMS domains and DER that link CEM and aggression in adulthood.

Domestic abuse is defined as "any incidence or series of occurrences of controlling, manipulative, making threats, aggression, or assault among those aged between 16 or over who were formerly life partners or relatives, regardless of sexual orientation or sexuality," according to the Home Office (2013). According to a US Department of Justice statement research findings from the National Violence Against Women Study, which included 16,000 interviews (Tjaden & Thoennes, 1998), about 2 million individuals are harassed in a year. According to the survey, there are about 9 million violent assaults per year. As millions of people are affected by partner violence, which includes physical, sexual, and psychological abuse. The purpose of this study was to look at the experiences of individuals in abusive relationships, as well as analyze the various types of abuse such as physical, emotional/psychological, and sexual abuse.

The association between childhood emotional maltreatment (CEM) and aggression is an empirically and theoretically supported finding. Both early maladaptive schema (EMS) domains and difficulties in emotion regulation (DER) have been examined as mediators on this relationship in the literature. However, past research has not evaluated the roles of EMS domains and DER simultaneously on the relationship between CEM and aggression. In an attempt to fill this gap in the literature, we conducted this study in Turkey to examine EMS domains and DER together as the mediators in the relationship between CEM and aggression in adulthood. The sample consisted of 291 participants (nfemale = 204; nmale = 87). The mean age was 22.96 years (SD = 5.62). All variables were assessed via self-report questionnaires. Mediation analyses were conducted via PROCESS and INDIRECT macro. Findings indicated that disconnection, unrelenting standards and impaired autonomy schema domains, and DER total score and the impulse subscale score mediated the relationship between CEM and aggression in adulthood. The current findings draw attention to EMS domains and DER that link CEM and aggression in adulthood.

Aim is to discuss gaslighting and to provide advice on how to recognize the abuser and how to defend oneself from the gaslighting.

Domina Petric is the sole author of this paper.  Gary Freedman uploaded the paper to academia.edu. 

GARY FREEDMAN IN NO WAY CONTRIBUTED TO THE CONTENT OF THIS PAPER ! !

This paper examines Plato's Symposium from the perspective of narcissistic 'love' relationships. Given the importance of the Symposium to the Western esoteric tradition, and recent scholarship highlighting how mystery cults have historically been used as covers for political praxis, reexamination of Plato's masterwork is timely and important.

The paper will be of interest to people studying the psychology of high-control groups or mystery cults.

Partner psychological aggression has been shown to be positively correlated with psychological distress and low self-esteem for women. This study adds to the existing literature by including research on men since very little research had been done on the effects of partner psychological aggression and the self-esteem of men. However, there
were a limited number of men who participated in this study and who endorsed experiencing partner psychological aggression. Hierarchical regression analyses were conducted with data from 153 males and females (N = 153) from national colleges and community samples to explore the relationship amongst partner psychological aggression, psychological distress as measured by depression and PTSD, self-esteem, and self-compassion. In this study, it was hypothesized that partner psychological aggression could predict psychological distress, as specifically measured by depression and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Results concluded that partner psychological
aggression could predict depression but not PTSD for women and it was not predictive of psychological distress for men. Self-esteem and self-compassion were hypothesized and found to be significantly negatively correlated with psychological distress and believed to buffer against the impact of psychological distress. Looking more closely, it was found
that self-esteem was not predictive of depression for men and self-compassion was not predictive of PTSD for men. Furthermore, it was hypothesized and found that individuals who experienced partner psychological aggression and also endorsed lower levels of self-esteem
and self-compassion were more likely to also exhibit symptoms of depression and PTSD. Additional clinical implications, limitations, and suggestions for future research are also included.

Gaslighting relies on lying, deceit, manipulation, which are couched in benevolent terms.

Gaslighting comes from the 1944 film Gaslight, in which Gregory (played by Charles Boyer) deliberately tries to make his partner, Paula (Ingrid Bergman), lose her mind by manipulating her, her surroundings, and her friends.

The term now refers to a devastating form of emotional and psychological abuse, as the gaslighter manipulates and chips away at their victim’s sense of self and reality. 

It is also more common than you might think, When I shared my experience of gaslighting, women and men reached out. It seems I was not alone, and neither were they.

Read the rest here: https://www.sbs.com.au/topics/life/relationships/article/2018/10/29/gaslighting-how-it-chips-away-your-sense-self

En la última década, la psicología del terrorismo ha prestado especial atención a la interacción individuo-grupo, en el intento de comprender mejor cómo se producen los procesos de radicalización violenta. El objetivo de esta investigación es evaluar si los miembros de un grupo de terroristas yihadistas fueron manipulados psicológicamente en su proceso de adoctrinamiento para la radicalización, mediante la aplicación de técnicas coercitivas y abuso psicológico. Para tal fin se ha utilizado la documentación contrastada de una sentencia judicial de la Audiencia Nacional española sobre los atestados de la “Operación NOVA I, II y III”, por entender que esta constituye una base sólida de material empírico que permite realizar un análisis de los indicadores de manipulación y abuso psicológico aplicados sobre los miembros de la célula. Los resultados obtenidos pueden interpretarse como evidencias de reforma del pensamiento y abuso psicológico en el seno de un grupo terrorista yihadista. Se concluye que estos resultados deberían ser tenidos en cuenta con el fin de prevenir proactivamente estos procesos de reclutamiento en general y de radicalización en particular, y, así, de las acciones terroristas consecuentes.

In the past decade, the psychology of terrorism has paid a special attention to individual-group interaction in an attempt to better understand how processes of violent radicalization occur. The objective of this research is to determine whether the members of a group of Jihadi terrorists were psychologically manipulated and abused during the process which indoctrinated and radicalized them. Towards that end, we have used the trustworthy documentation of the testimonies about “Operation NOVA I, II and III”, found in a judicial ruling by the Spanish National Court, since it offers a solid base of empirical material which allows foran analysis of the indicators of the coercive and psychological abuse used against the members of the terrorist cell. The results may be regarded as evidence for the practice of thought reform and psychological abuse in a Jihadist terrorist group. We conclude that these results should be taken into account in efforts to proactively prevent these techniques of recruitment in general and of radicalization in particular, and thus of the consequent terrorist actions.

Full citation:

Spinazzola, J., Hodgdon, H., Liang, L.J., Ford, J.D., Layne, C.M., Pynoos, R.S., Stolbach, B., & Kisiel, C. (2014). Unseen wounds: The contribution of psychological maltreatment to child and adolescent mental health and risk outcomes in a national sample. Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy, 6(Suppl 1), 2014, S18-S28. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/a0037766

Abstract:

For this study, we evaluated the independent and additive predictive effects of psychological maltreatment on an array of behavioral problems, symptoms, and disorders in a large national sample of clinic-referred children and adolescents drawn from the National Child Traumatic Stress Network Core Data Set (CDS; see Layne, Briggs-King, & Courtois, 2014). We analyzed a subsample of 5,616 youth with lifetime histories of 1 or more of 3 forms of maltreatment: psychological maltreatment (emotional abuse or emotional neglect), physical abuse, and sexual abuse. Measures included the University of California, Los Angeles Posttraumatic Stress Disorder–Reaction Index (Steinberg et al., 2004), Child Behavior Checklist (Achenbach & Rescorla, 2004), and 27 diagnostic and CDS-specific clinical severity indicators. Psychologically maltreated youth exhibited equivalent or greater baseline levels of behavioral problems, symptoms, and disorders compared with physically or sexually abused youth on most indicators. The co-occurrence of psychological maltreatment with physical or sexual abuse was linked to the exacerbation of most outcomes. We found that the clinical profiles of psychologically maltreated youth overlapped with, yet were distinct from, those of physically and/or sexually abused youth. Despite its high prevalence in the CDS, psychological maltreatment was rarely the focus of intervention for youth in this large national sample. We discuss implications for child mental health policy; educational outreach to providers, youth, and families; and the development or adaptation of evidence-based interventions that target the effects of this widespread, harmful, yet often overlooked form of maltreatment.

Keywords: psychological maltreatment, emotional abuse and emotional neglect, physical and sexual abuse, clinical profiles of maltreated youth, complex trauma

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This study examined the prevalence of intimate partner violence (IPV) among a sample of 600 ever-married women from a representative health administrative area located in the Kandy district of Sri Lanka. IPV was assessed using the world health organization (WHO) instrument developed for use in the WHO multi-country study on women's health and domestic violence against women. Among all participants 59.5% (n=357) have experienced any type of abuse (any form of physical, psychological, sexual abuse and controlling behaviour) at least once during their lifetime. Out of the total 41.3% (n=248) have experienced abuse (any form of physical, psychological and sexual abuse) during the last 12 months. Considering the lifetime IPV experiences, 39.5% (n=237) reported physical abuse, 39% (n=234) reported psychological abuse, 12.3% (n=74) reported sexual abuse and31.3% (n=188) reported generally controlling behaviour by the partner. During the last year 14.8% (n=89) have been physically, 26.3% (n=158) have been psychologically and 7.17% (n=43) have been sexually abused. The present study reveals high lifetime and past year prevalence of IPV compared to other recent studies conducted in Sri Lanka. Furthermore, different types of IPV acts were present with chronic and severe experiences. Hence, interventions should focus on different types of IPV and various abusive behaviours. Further studies are needed to assess the association of different types of IPV and the contributory factors.

Öz
İstismar türleri arasında yer alan duygusal istismar diğer bir deyişle psikolojik istismar; bir kişinin başka bir kişiyi
bir davranışa tabi tutması ya da maruz bırakması ile karakterize edilen ve anksiyete, kronik depresyon ya da travma
sonrası stres bozukluğu da dahil olmak üzere psikolojik travma ile sonuçlanabilen bir istismar türüdür. Psikolojik
istismar diğer istismar türlerini şemsiyesi altında toplamasına rağmen; yakın ilişkilerde görülen diğer istismar
türlerine (cinsel, fiziksel) nazaran daha az ilgi görmektedir. Psikolojik istismarda gözle görülebilen fiziksel bir
bulgunun olmaması bu istismar türünü yıllarca saklı kılabilmektedir. Hatta kişi bu istismar türü ile ebeveynleri
vesilesiyle çocukluğunda tanıştıysa, yıllarca psikolojik istismara uğradığının farkında bile olmadan yaşamını sürdürebilmektedir. Bu çalışmada yetişkin psikolojik istismarının daha net anlaşılabilmesi ve konu hakkında farkındalığının arttırılması hedeflenmiştir. Bu amaçla romantik ilişkisi olan 85 katılımcıya psikolojik olarak istismar
edici davranış anketi uygulanmıştır. Sonuç olarak katılımcıların romantik ilişkilerinde orta düzeyde istismar edici
davranışlara maruz kaldıkları ortaya konmuştur. Ayrıca bu davranışlara maruz kalan katılımcıların %51,28’i farkındalıklarını anket ile sağladıklarını ifade etmişlerdir. Pek az kişinin tanıyabildiği psikolojik istismar, hem bireysel hem de toplumsal sağlığın korunması için fark edilmesi gereken elzem bir konudur.
Anahtar sözcükler: Psikolojik istismar, psikolojik şiddet, duygusal istismar, yetişkin, ruh sağlığı
Abstract
Emotional abuse, in other words psychological abuse; is a type of abuse characterized by an individual's exposure
to or subordinate to another person, which may result in psychological trauma, including anxiety, chronic depression, or post-traumatic stress disorder. Although psychological abuse collects other types of abuse under its umbrella; it gains less interest than other types of abuse (sexual, physical) seen in intimate relationships. The fact that
there is no physical evidence visible in psychological abuse can keep this type of abuse hidden for years. Even if a
person is introduced to this type of abuse by his or her parents through his childhood, he can continue his life for
years without even realizing that he has suffered psychological abuse. In this study, it is aimed to understand the
psychological abuse of adults more clearly and to raise awareness about the topic. For this purpose, 85 participants who have romantic relationship were subjected to a psychologically abusive behavioral questionnaire. As a
result, participants were exposed to moderately abusive behaviors in romantic relationships. In addition, 51,28%
of the participants exposed to these behaviors stated that they gained their awareness through questionnaires. The
psychological abuse that few people can define is an essential issue to be recognized for the protection of both
individual and social health
Keywords: psychological abuse, psychological violence, emotional abuse, adult, mental health

همان طور که بدن، احساس و روان انسان می تواند مورد آزار و دست درازی دیگران قرار گیرد معنویت انسان هم ممکن است دستخوش تعرض و تجاوز شود. در روانشناسی به سوءاستفاده، تحقیر یا آزار فرد با اهداف مذهبی، ایدئولوژیک یا ضد دینی «سوء استفاده دینی» (religious abuse) یا «تجاوز معنوی» (spiritual rape) گفته می شود. تجاوز معنوی سوء استفاده روحی از انسان است که باعث جدا یا منزجر شدن او از آن قسمت وجودش شود که روح نام دارد. منظور از «روح» قابلیت اندیشیدن و درک فرا-مادی است که به گفته روانشناسان مرز مشخصی با روان و احساس انسان ندارد (ماتیوس). هرگونه تلاش برای بازتعریف و کنترل قابلیت های روحی انسان تجاوز معنوی به وی محسوب می شود. تجاوز معنوی ممکن است از روی خیرخواهی یا با خودخواهی انجام شود، و در هر صورت فرد قربانی را دچار اختلالات روانی موقت یا مزمن از جمله تروما، فوبیا، افسردگی، گسستگی روانی و احساس گناه می کند. تجاوز معنوی مختص مذهب خاصی نیست و تمام ادیان و مذاهب حتی مکاتب معنوی غیر دینی(spiritual but not religious - SBNR)  از آن بهره دارند.

Partner psychological aggression has been shown to be positively correlated with psychological distress and low self-esteem for women. This study adds to the existing literature by including research on men since very little research had been done on the effects of partner psychological aggression and the self-esteem of men. However, there were a limited number of men who participated in this study and who endorsed experiencing partner psychological aggression. Hierarchical regression analyses were conducted with data from 153 males and females (N = 153) from national colleges and community samples to explore the relationship amongst partner psychological aggression, psychological distress as measured by depression and PTSD, self-esteem, and self-compassion. In this study, it was hypothesized that partner psychological aggression could predict psychological distress, as specifically measured by depression and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Results concluded that partner psych...

The research was carried out to examine the relationship between psychological birth order, social anxiety and childhood traumas of adult participants. Childhood Trauma Scale, Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale, White-Campbell Psychological Birth Order Inventory and demographic information form prepared by the researchers were applied to a total of 456 participants, 270 women and 186 men, aged 18-45 years. The sub-dimensions of the Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale are fear/anxiety and avoidance.The sub-dimensions of the Childhood Trauma Scale are emotional abuse, physical abuse, physical neglect, emotional neglect and sexual abuse. According to the findings; It was determined that there was a moderate positive and significant relationship between childhood traumas and psychological birth order in middle children.It was determined that there was a moderate and negative relationship between sexual abuse and the Persuasive and Charmer youngest children of male gender. Based on the Social Anx...

The association between childhood emotional maltreatment (CEM) and aggression is an empirically and theoretically supported finding. Both early maladaptive schema (EMS) domains and difficulties in emotion regulation (DER) have been examined as mediators on this relationship in the literature. However, past research has not evaluated the roles of EMS domains and DER simultaneously on the relationship between CEM and aggression. In an attempt to fill this gap in the literature, we conducted this study in Turkey to examine EMS domains and DER together as the mediators in the relationship between CEM and aggression in adulthood. The sample consisted of 291 participants (nfemale = 204; nmale = 87). The mean age was 22.96 years (SD = 5.62). All variables were assessed via self-report questionnaires. Mediation analyses were conducted via PROCESS and INDIRECT macro. Findings indicated that disconnection, unrelenting standards and impaired autonomy schema domains, and DER total score and the impulse subscale score mediated the relationship between CEM and aggression in adulthood. The current findings draw attention to EMS domains and DER that link CEM and aggression in adulthood.

The present study explored the sexual, physical, psychological, and overall dating violence experiences, and related these experiences to Investment Model
variables among Turkish college women. Three hundred and ninety dating women from four universities in Ankara, Turkey completed the Satisfaction, Investment,
Alternatives, and Commitment subscales from the Investment Model Scale and the Sexual Coercion, Physical Assault, and Psychological Aggression subscales
from the Revised Conflict Tactics Scale. 79.5 percent reported at least one incident of violence in a dating relationship within the previous year.
Regression analyses indicated that satisfaction fully mediated the relations between physical, psychological, and overall dating violence victimization and
commitment, but not for sexual victimization. The results suggest that future research should explore the possibility that the dissatisfaction women experience
may be related to an increased likelihood of relation termination.

Thinking back to early 2018, ‘gaslighting’ meant little to me. It was the term de jour in online arguments; a word I saw thrown around on social media when people got into disagreements. I figured ‘gaslighting’ meant when people disagreed with what you’re saying, or when they tried to minimise your experience. The true extent of gaslighting, its impact on my own lived experience, became clear to me one day nonin late June, when I discovered my former partner’s extensive lies and deception; the foundation of my recent years was coming undone. It felt as if my world was crumbling, each deteriorating stratum exposing further layers of lies. Months later, I am still rebuilding.

Read more here https://meanjin.com.au/blog/ill-met-by-gaslight/

In this study, a phenomenological method was used to investigate the impact of long-term psychological child maltreatment by one’s maternal figure.  The objective of the present study was to explicate victims’ perspectives on their psychological maltreatment as a coherent whole.  Five adults (ages 18-25) reporting a history of childhood psychological maltreatment provided descriptions of their maltreatment in written and verbal form.  The descriptions were analyzed in such a way as to elucidate the quality and significance of having been psychologically abused as experienced by these victims.  Themes revolving around feelings of worthlessness, inadequacy, self-dissatisfaction, and disempowerment were found to determine the ways in which low self-esteem, aggression, self-directed anger, and pessimism about one’s future arose within the victims’ perceptions of abuse.

This study documents psychometrics of the Turkish version of Intimate Partner Violence Attitude Scale-Revised (IPVAS-R; Fincham, Cui, Braithwaite, & Pasley, 2008). Dating college students (n=280) from four universities completed Turkish versions of the IPVAS-R, Multidimensional Measure of Emotional Abuse, Physical Assault of Conflict Tactics Scale - Revised, and Ambivalent Sexism Inventory. Confirmatory factor analysis supported the three factor structure of the IPVAS-R, albeit with an item change from the Abuse to the Control factor, due to the cultural nuances. This factor structure was cross validated with a second independent sample of 205 dating college students. Convergent validity and satisfactory internal consistency were also reported. The IPVAS-R was found to be a psychometrically sound measure to gauge attitudes toward psychological and physical dating aggression among college students outside of North America.

Background In recent decades, a great amount of research has investigated traumatic experiences in childhood and how it may relate to subsequent health and wellbeing. Aim/Purpose: To explore the association between traumatic experiences in childhood (psychological abuse, physical abuse, and distress in childhood) and health and wellbeing in adulthood.

This Australian study explores a person's self-reported exposure to childhood abuse to identify the characteristics that are predictive of clinical levels of dissociation in adulthood. The final sample comprised 303 participants, including 26 inpatients and outpatients (24 females and two males) receiving treatment for a dissociative disorder (DD), and 277 university participants, including 220 controls (186 females, 34 males), 31 with elevated levels of dissociation consistent with a DD or posttraumatic stress disorder (27 females and four males), and 26 with clinical levels of dissociation (20 females and six males). The findings demonstrate clinical levels of dissociation and DDs occur in individuals reporting a history of childhood abuse, particularly sexual abuse and experiences that are potentially life-threatening to a child, such as choking, smothering, and physical injury that breaks bones or teeth, or that compromise the child's survival needs, including threats of abandonment and deprivation of basic needs. Females who disclosed being sexual abused in addition to being choked or smothered had a 106-fold risk of clinical levels of dissociation. As expected, self-reported amnesia was prevalent in the dissociative groups. Yet, even in the control group, one-third of those disclosing sexual abuse reported an unclear memory of it. Strong similarities in abuse experiences were found between the clinical sample and those in the university sample with clinical levels of dissociation (which is unlikely to have previously been diagnosed). The dissociative groups reported higher rates of corroboration of their abusive experiences. The findings support the traumatic etiology of dissociation.

This Australian study explores a person's self-reported exposure to childhood abuse to identify the characteristics that are predictive of clinical levels of dissociation in adulthood. The final sample comprised 303 participants, including 26 inpatients and outpatients (24 females and two males) receiving treatment for a dissociative disorder (DD), and 277 university participants, including 220 controls (186 females, 34 males), 31 with elevated levels of dissociation consistent with a DD or posttraumatic stress disorder (27 females and four males), and 26 with clinical levels of dissociation (20 females and six males). The findings demonstrate clinical levels of dissociation and DDs occur in individuals reporting a history of childhood abuse, particularly sexual abuse and experiences that are potentially life-threatening to a child, such as choking, smothering, and physical injury that breaks bones or teeth, or that compromise the child's survival needs, including threats of abandonment and deprivation of basic needs. Females who disclosed being sexual abused in addition to being choked or smothered had a 106-fold risk of clinical levels of dissociation. As expected, self-reported amnesia was prevalent in the dissociative groups. Yet, even in the control group, one-third of those disclosing sexual abuse reported an unclear memory of it. Strong similarities in abuse experiences were found between the clinical sample and those in the university sample with clinical levels of dissociation (which is unlikely to have previously been diagnosed). The dissociative groups reported higher rates of corroboration of their abusive experiences. The findings support the traumatic etiology of dissociation.

Previous studies have shown that socio-demographic factors, childhood socioeconomic status (CSES), childhood traumatic experiences (CTEs), social support and behavioral factors are associated with health and well-being in adulthood. However, the relative importance of these factors for mental health, health, and well-being has not been studied. Moreover, the mechanisms by which CTEs affect mental health, health, and well-being in adulthood are not clear. Using data from a representative sample (n = 12,981) of the adult population in Tromsø, Norway, this study examines (i) the relative contribution of structural conditions (gender, age, CSES, psychological abuse, physical abuse, and substance abuse distress) to social support and behavioral factors in adulthood; (ii) the relative contribution of socio-demographic factors, CSES, CTEs, social support, and behavioral factors to three multi-item instruments of mental health (SCL-10), health (EQ-5D), and subjective well-being (SWLS) in ad...

Child abuse does not have to be physical or sexual. The most widespread forms of child abuse are psychological, and therefore harder to see, acknowledge, and eradicate. As abused children, we unconsciously pass on patterns of abuse visited on us to children, and to others we have power over including students, employees, and even friends and lovers.