Sociology and Criminology-Open Access
Open Access

Characteristics and Consequences of Psychological Assault

Jane Austen^{* *}Correspondence: Jane Austen, Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice, Florida International University, Miami, USA, Email:

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About the Study

A person who subjects or exposes another person to behavior that may cause psychological trauma, such as anxiety, persistent depression, or post-traumatic stress disorder, is said to be engaging in psychological abuse, also known as emotional abuse. Bullying, gas lighting, and abuse at work are examples of circumstances where there is an imbalance of power in abusive relationships. Acute or ongoing violations of human rights, such as torture, other forms of violence, incarceration without a trial, false allegations, false convictions, and severe defamation, such as when committed by the government or the media, may also be committed.

Characteristics of abusers

The Deny, Attack, and Reverse Victim and Offender (DARVO) study discovered that aggressive people, regardless of gender, shared a number of traits, such as high levels of distrust and jealousy, abrupt and jarring mood swings, a lack of self-control, and higher than usual approval rates of aggression and violence. Argue that antisocial men exhibit two distinct forms of interpersonal aggressiveness, whereas antisocial women rarely show hostility outside from their intimate male partners or their own children.

Effects

Intimate relationships: Most victims of psychological abuse in close relationships frequently go through psychological and behavioral changes. This varies depending on the forms and severity of emotional abuse. On a person's sense of self and integrity, long-term emotional abuse has crippling effects. The three specific types of emotional abuse-threats, limitation of the abused party, and harm to the victim's property-are present in the relationship, research frequently demonstrates that emotional abuse is a prelude to physical abuse. Domestic violence victims frequently fail to recognize psychological abuse as assault.

Children: Children who experience psychological abuse may experience a range of mental health issues, including Post- Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), major depressive disorder, personality disorders, low self-esteem, aggression, anxiety, and emotional insensitivity. Constant criticism, daily threats, or feeling rejected which can be demonstrated by withholding support and love as well as receiving no advice from the children's guardians, are examples of these consequences.

Workplace: Research from the earlier has shown that psychological abuse occurs in the workplace. The following are the most typical psychological, professional, financial, and societal consequences of sexual harassment and retaliation: psychological stress, health problems, and motivational decline. Reduced performance at work or in school as a result of stressful circumstances; more absenteeism due to repeated harassment fears. Having to alter academic goals, drop classes, or quit school out of stress or fear of harassment. Being treated poorly and made to feel like an object by unnecessary comments. Losses of faith in settings like those where the harassment took place. Loss of confidence in the types of people who have positions equivalent to those of the harasser or their co-workers, particularly when they are unsupportive; challenges or strain in peer relationships or connections with colleagues. Effects on sexual life and relationships: Can cause severe marital stress, which occasionally leads to divorce. Panic attacks, anxiety, or depression being cut off from a support network or being excluded from social, professional, or academic groups. Headaches, weariness, inability to concentrate, or nightmares.

Elderly: It has been discovered that elderly victims of psychological abuse exhibit similar symptoms to other population groups, including despair, anxiety, feelings of loneliness and abandonment, and helplessness. In one study, which included 355 old Chinese participants, it was discovered that 75% of the alleged abusers were the elderly person's grown children. These individuals in this study experienced the effects of the abuse, particularly verbal abuse, which added to their psychological suffering.