Do victims of spousal abuse suffer from Stockholm Syndrome?

Answer 1

So in the case of the Stockholm Syndrome a normal adult may experience ironic attachment to an abuser through the sequence of terror, isolation, infantilization, denial, gratitude and attachment. Love is felt by some. A battered wife might love for similar reasons.

Or, a battered wife might love her spouse because she was trained from infancy to love an abusive parent --that is, to equate love with the intimate enduring dependence on one who provides life's necessities and who also hits and hurts.

Or, the battered wife might love her spouse because relief from punishment is so rewarding that she has learned to savor this feeling while denying the pain of physical abuse.

For some, there is simply no exit. The door is open but she cannot leave. She has no resources of her own. Her children need her. She is terrified of the police. Social workers are people who can declare you an unfit mother. The perpetrator has threatened to kill her if she leaves or if she tells and she knows no safe haven from him. There is no federal witness protection program for domestic assault victims. Her fear is real, the threat is real, the pathway to freedom cannot be found.

Some harbor hope for better times. The cycle of tension, abuse, relief; tension, abuse, relief has periods in which optimism is rewarded. Hope for the cessation of battering is realized and the relief experienced in the periods of peace is profound. Animal experimenters and human inquisitors know there is nothing as powerful as relief from torture as a positive reward for desired behavior. For some battered women the thin thread of hope and the episodic experience of relief reinforces her decision to stay

Answer 2

Yes, it's a similar situation. The abuser beats you down until you are afraid and then you are reliant upon them. If you or your partner are in trouble, get out while you can.

Answer 3

Yes. It is a form of control.

Answer 4

that's a really interesting question....
according to this the answer is yes!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stockholm_syndrome