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Identification With the Aggressor and Inward and Outward Aggression in Abuse Survivors

SAGE Publications Inc
Journal of Interpersonal Violence
Authors:
Yael Lahav at Tel Aviv University
Yael Lahav
Santi Allende at Palo Alto VA Medical Center
Santi Allende
  • Palo Alto VA Medical Center
Anat Talmon at Hebrew University of Jerusalem
Anat Talmon
Karni Ginzburg at Tel Aviv University
Karni Ginzburg
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Abstract and Figures

Childhood abuse survivors may display both inward and outward aggression manifested in self-injurious behavior (SIB) and violent acts toward others. Scrutinizing the literature reveals that the relational dynamics between victims and their perpetrators might be involved in these phenomena. Yet, research on this subject matter has been sparse. Filling this gap, this study investigated the contribution of the singular bonds between victims and their perpetrators, known as identification with the aggressor, in explaining survivors’ aggression. The study was conducted among 306 Israeli college/university students who reported a history of childhood abuse. Results revealed that levels of adopting the perpetrator’s experience, identifying with the perpetrator’s aggression, and replacing one’s agency with that of the perpetrator were significantly associated with survivors’ inward and outward aggression. Moreover, profile type—that is, having high versus low levels of identification with the aggressor—was implicated in participants’ SIBs, urge to harm others, and violent acts toward others, above and beyond the effects of gender and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms. The present findings suggest that identification with the aggressor might make survivors prone to the re-enactment of past abusive dynamics, which, in turn, could eventuate in aggression toward themselves and others.
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https://doi.org/10.1177/0886260520938516
Journal of Interpersonal Violence
© The Author(s) 2020
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DOI: 10.1177/0886260520938516
journals.sagepub.com/home/jiv
Original Research
Identification With the
Aggressor and Inward
and Outward Aggression
in Abuse Survivors
Yael Lahav, PhD,1 Santiago Allende, MS,2
Anat Talmon, PhD,3 Karni Ginzburg, PhD,1
and David Spiegel, MD3
Abstract
Childhood abuse survivors may display both inward and outward aggression
manifested in self-injurious behavior (SIB) and violent acts toward others.
Scrutinizing the literature reveals that the relational dynamics between
victims and their perpetrators might be involved in these phenomena. Yet,
research on this subject matter has been sparse. Filling this gap, this study
investigated the contribution of the singular bonds between victims and
their perpetrators, known as identification with the aggressor, in explaining
survivors’ aggression. The study was conducted among 306 Israeli college/
university students who reported a history of childhood abuse. Results
revealed that levels of adopting the perpetrator’s experience, identifying
with the perpetrator’s aggression, and replacing one’s agency with that of
the perpetrator were significantly associated with survivors’ inward and
outward aggression. Moreover, profile type—that is, having high versus low
levels of identification with the aggressor—was implicated in participants’
SIBs, urge to harm others, and violent acts toward others, above and beyond
1Tel Aviv University, Israel
2Palo Alto University, CA, USA
3Stanford University, CA, USA
Corresponding Author:
Yael Lahav, Department of Occupational Therapy, The Stanley Steyer School of Health
Professions, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, P.O.B. 39040, Ramat Aviv, Tel-
Aviv 69978, Israel.
Email: yaellah1@tauex.tau.ac.il
938516JIVXXX10.1177/0886260520938516Journal of Interpersonal ViolenceLahav et al.
research-article2020
2022, Vol. 37(5-6) 2705 –2728
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