Unique Trauma Type Identified in Coercive Control Victims

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Researchers looked at the effects of coercive control—a form of violence where the victim’s life is severely restricted by an intimate partner through threats, violence, technology, and other means—and found victims “experience specific emotional trauma, shaped by processes of threat and restraint.” The researchers propose a new concept, “coercive control trauma,” and argue for its usefulness.

They write that coercive control “can be characterized by three processes or covert ‘attacks’ against: (a) the victim-survivor’s autonomy and independence; (b) identity and self-worth; and (c) are facilitated via an environment shaped by terror and helplessness.”

The study, “Slowly, Over Time, You Completely Lose Yourself”: Conceptualizing Coercive Control Trauma in Intimate Partner Relationships by Kristy Kassing and Anthony Collins, was published on Feb. 23 in Journal of Interpersonal Violence.