Understanding Abusive Relationships
By: Psychologist María Hernández
Zaragoza - Spain
Women experience the brunt of violence. The alarming rate of violence has been the cause for increased study of aggressors
in the scientific community. In light of this, the questions most frequently asked are:
Why do men abuse women? Is there a typical
profile that would help in identifying one?
To try to answer these questions, we must emphasize that in speaking of violence we refer to a complex learned behavior and
multidimensional in its expression and multifactorial in its causation, covering both physical violence and psychological
violence. In studies, we found that bullies often have significant psychological deficiencies, such as cognitive biases (distorted
thoughts about sex roles and the inferiority of women and the justification of violence), difficulties in communication and
problem solving, irritability and a lack of impulse control and other specific problems (alcohol-drug addiction which acts as
disinhibiting, existence of pathological jealousy, emotional instability or a personality disorder, the most frequently encountered
antisocial, the limit and narcissistic).
In light of this, is an intervention with an aggressor designed to heal them?
We respond strongly "NO". It is important to note that a psychological intervention with aggressors is not designed and applied
to cure a person, but its utility is to change the mind and behavior of a subject, to uproot violence and reallocate their
behavioral repertoire.
Is there a particular profile for the abused women?
We cannot tell for sure, either way. The attackers have a higher rate than the mainstream population of psychopathological
entities. It is true that sometimes profiles where the attackers as social skills deficit or impulse control appear diffuse. However,
there is no way to say for sure if these psychological factors always lead violence. Therefore, it is necessary to have not only
psychological intervention to assist women victims of male violence, but also to provide rehabilitation treatment for abusers. A
number of studies have shown that psychological treatment is shown to be the most appropriate way to deal with the abusers.
To all the exposed; How can we move forward in achieving an equal society and less violent than the current one?
Recent research suggests that intervention with abused women and their children is essential but insufficient if we do not act
simultaneously on the aggressor through a rehabilitation process. Is ample evidence that gender violence is an educational
problem, which is transmitted across generations through observational learning. At all levels in society, everyone has a role in
eradicating violence against women and children, not only those directly affected by it - in the end it affects the community
overall.