Stockholm syndrome
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Stockholm syndrome is a condition that causes
hostages to develop a psychological alliance with their captors as a survival strategy during captivity.
[1] These
feelings,
resulting from a bond formed between captor and captives during
intimate time spent together, are generally considered irrational in
light of the danger or risk endured by the victims. Generally speaking,
Stockholm syndrome consists of "strong emotional ties that develop
between two persons where one person intermittently harasses, beats,
threatens, abuses, or intimidates the other."
[2] The
FBI's Hostage Barricade Database System shows that roughly eight percent of victims show evidence of Stockholm syndrome.
[3]
It was formally named in 1973 when four hostages were taken during a bank robbery in
Stockholm, Sweden. The hostages defended their captors after being released and would not agree to testify in court against them.
[4]
Stockholm syndrome is ostensibly paradoxical because the sympathetic
sentiments captives feel towards their captors are the opposite of the
fear and disdain an onlooker may feel towards the captors.
There are four key components that generally lead to the development of Stockholm syndrome:
- A hostage's development of positive feelings towards their captor
- No previous hostage-captor relationship
- A refusal by hostages to co-operate with police forces and other government authorities
- A hostage's belief in the humanity of their captor, for the reason
that when a victim holds the same values as the aggressor, they cease to
be perceived as a threat.[2][3]
Stockholm syndrome is considered a "contested illness", due to many
law enforcement officers' doubt about the legitimacy of the condition.
[4]
History
Nils Bejerot, a Swedish
criminologist and
psychiatrist coined the term after
Stockholm police
asked him for assistance with analyzing the victims' reactions to the
1973 bank robbery and their status as hostages. As the idea of
brainwashing
was not a new concept, Bejerot, speaking on "a news cast after the
captives' release" instinctively reduced the hostages' reactions to a
result of being brainwashed by their captors.
[4] He called it
Norrmalmstorgssyndromet, meaning "The Norrmalmstorg Syndrome"; it later became known outside of Sweden as the Stockholm syndrome.
[5] It was originally defined by psychiatrist
Frank Ochberg to aid the management of hostage situations.
[6]
Famous instances
Patty Hearst
Patty Hearst, the granddaughter of publisher William Randolph Hearst, was taken and held hostage by the
Symbionese Liberation Army,
"an urban guerilla group", in 1974. She was recorded denouncing her
family as well as the police under her new name, "Tania", and was later
seen working with the SLA to rob banks in San Francisco. She publicly
asserted her sympathetic feelings towards the SLA and their pursuits as
well. After her 1975 arrest, pleading Stockholm syndrome did not work as
a proper defense in court, much to the chagrin of her defense lawyer,
F. Lee Bailey. Her seven-year prison sentence was later commuted, and she was eventually presidentially pardoned by
Bill Clinton, who was informed that she was not acting under her own free will.
[4]
iki/Stockholm_syndrome
