Stockholm syndrome: Compassionating with the abuser

A person kept in captive may experience Stockholm syndrome, a sophisticated psychological reaction, if they form a strong emotional bond with their captor. The empathy arising in the victim for the captor's viewpoints and behavior is the most commonly observed symptom.

Moving away from its point of origin, this condition is now observed in many other kinds of trauma. The recognition of this syndrome has been observed to increase rapidly in recent years.

In this article, we cover the history and origin of Stockholm syndrome, along with its potential origins and related symptoms.

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Why is Stockholm syndrome called so?

In 1973, a robbery took place at a bank in Stockholm, Sweden. The captors held captives some of employees of the bank.

Over six days, these people were held hostage. Some of them began to develop empathy for the robbers and even made a union for collecting money for their defense after their release.

This unusual coping mechanism shown by the victims towards the abusers was then called the ‘Stockholm syndrome’ by criminologists and psychiatrists. The observation of this behavior among individuals held under captive or abusive situations changed the way experts looked at the impact of traumatic situations on common people.

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Is Stockholm syndrome real?

Sexual, physical and emotional abuse also lead to Stockholm syndrome. (Image by Tinnakorn Jorruang on Vecteezy)

To some, the attitude of people having this syndrome may seem like an act put up just for show and no in-depth reasons to justify this behavior. However, the symptom is as real as any other psychological condition, like post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

Due to the comparatively lesser recognition of Stockholm syndrome, there's still no standard treatment available for it. However, psychologists believe that talk-therapy and medications can help out suffering individuals in understanding how the changes in behavior during the captive period is a coping mechanism adopted by their brain.

It's, however, very important to understand that just like most of the psychological conditions, all individuals don’t show the same behavioral changes when exposed to the same circumstances.

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Causes of Stockholm syndrome

Abusive situations can leave a long-term impact. (Image by Іван Святковський on Vecteezy)

The exact reason why some people show this syndrome while others do not, is still not known. However, there are two schools of thought among psychologists:

#1 Evolutionary survival tactics

In early civilizations, the risk of being captured by rival communities was very high. Due to this, a survival strategy may have evolved among people to sympathize with their abusers to ensure their safety.

That increased their survival chances and gradually became a human trait rather than just a spontaneous response.

#2 Emotional charging

Captivation or abuse of any form are very traumatic events for any individual. That results in their brain adapting to the situation by developing a sense of empathy for the abuser when some acts of kindness are shown by them.

This empathy makes the victim feel grateful when they're not being harmed by the abuser.

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Symptoms of Stockholm syndrome

Speaking up against any sort of violence is a must. (Image by KamranAydinov on Freepik)

The most commonly observed symptoms of Stockholm syndrome are sense of sympathy for the abuser’s beliefs and actions, along with attempts to promote the abuser’s thoughts.

The suffering individual develops a sense of resentment and loses trust in the law enforcement or any other authority figures and glorifies the abuser above any rules and regulations.

Some other symptoms include irritability, loss of concentration, anxiety, sleep deprivation and not being able to enjoy as earlier.

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The Stockholm syndrome is a recent add-on to the list of psychological disorders experienced by individuals where they're observed to sympathize with the abuser when held in captivation or under abuse.

The causes are expected to be evolutionary or emotional, but the real reason remains unknown. With proper therapy sessions and medications, this problem can get cured, but there are no standard treatments available at the moment.