Stockholm syndrome

    Traumatic bonding is a phenomenon that occurs when people experience a traumatic event together, such as battle, and develop a strong emotional attachment to an abuser. Victims form a positive bond with abusers in interactions marked by clear power differentials. Examples of situations that can result in traumatic bonding include sexual abuse, human trafficking, and hostage situations. Some prefer the term "victim" for life-threatening traumatic experiences, while others choose "survivor," "warrior," or "victor."

    What matters is that those who have experienced these traumas have a say in how they refer to themselves, and the words we use should accurately reflect their experiences. The term "Stockholm syndrome" attempts to explain why some survivors of hostage situations do not engage in a fight-or-flight response and even sympathize with perpetrators, as supposedly evidenced by a lack of cooperation with police and expressions of understanding or a lack of hostility toward their perpetrator. The term has since been applied to other traumatic situations with power imbalances, such as kidnapping and abusive relationships.

    Stockholm syndrome suggests a relationship between perpetrator and victim that reflects mutual care and affection, but such mutuality doesn't exist in cases of abduction, abuse, and life-threatening situations. Moreover, Stockholm syndrome attempts to explain survival from captivity from the perpetrator or observer's perspective. The variables include the perceived threat to survival, the belief that the threat will be carried out, the captive perceiving some small kindness from the captor, and the hostage experiencing the perceived inability to escape. Each of these perspectives requires conscious processing that contradicts the physiological responses during a state of terror. 

    These conceptual issues with Stockholm syndrome may explain why a review of professional literature on survival techniques during violent crimes shows a lack of validated criteria for Stockholm syndrome as a psychiatric diagnosis, along with a limited empirical research base. The concept's origin in the media, rather than research or clinical practice, and its application to various crimes, ages, and interpersonal contexts, raises questions about its meaning, validity, and continued relevance to theory building and research.