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Brook Elaine
Matt5verse6@yahoo.com
7 May 2017
For my final project, I would like to present on the links between domestic violence and
mental illness. I believe the workings of the brain and quite a few concepts we have covered in
Cognitive Psychology can help shed some light on this topic. First, I would like to give a little
bit of background as to why I chose this for my final project. When I was in middle school, I
read the book Death by Child Abuse and No One Heard by Eve Krupinski and Dana Weikel. It
is an account of the last few days of a five year old girl named Ursula Sunshine Assaid who was
abused and killed by her mothers boyfriend. That book made me realize I wanted to help
abused and neglected children, women, elderly, and disabled. For six years I was a court
appointed child advocate for the state of California and currently I am studying to get my
paralegal certificate so I may work for attorneys who represent abused and neglected individuals,
primarily children. Last November I was a witness to an assault and battery on an elderly man
who is also significantly mentally handicapped. Growing up, the mother of one of my friends
was killed by her husband. Another friend of mine, from high school, was shot by her husband.
Thankfully, she survived. So, what causes people to commit crimes of violence toward those
who cannot defend themselves, like children, the elderly, and those who are disabled, and/or
against those they supposedly love? Is it always alcohol or drug related? What other factors
can cause someone to behave so monstrously toward other human beings? Cognitive and other
etc. can be used to pinpoint causes of aggression and violent behavior in people, which leads to
First, I want to define domestic violence just to be clear. According to the American
violence is characterized as a pattern of coercive behaviors that may include repeated battering
and injury, psychological abuse, sexual assault, progressive social isolation, deprivation, and
intimidation. These behaviors are perpetrated by someone who is or was involved in an intimate
relationship with the victim, (Flitcraft, Hadley, Hendricks-Matthews, McLeer, & Warshaw 40).
The medical definition of domestic violence might differ from the legal one but that is a subject
for another paper. This one will focus on the medical side of abuse, mainly domestic violence.
A lot of attention and focus has been given to the victims of abuse and how it affects them
psychologically. This, of course, is wonderful but I also want to dig into the behavior of the
offender. Many times victims search for a reason why the perpetrator behaved in the manor he
or she did. Was the individual under the influence of something, under great emotional distress
such as finding his or spouse involved in a sexual relationship with another individual, enraged,
or simply without empathy? When the authorities are called, what do they expect to find? Many
times their questions revolve around alcohol or drug abuse. But could mental illness be the
reason? Yes, and not just involving psychopathy. Further, once a wife or husband realizes her
or his spouse suffers from such mental illness, how should she or he respond? Is it important or
Second, I would like to look at the differences between psychopathy and sociopathy.
When addressing the parts of the brain, psychopaths have reduced gray matter in their frontal
lobes, increased striatal volume, abnormal asymmetry in the hippocampus, a larger corpus
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callosum, a lack of structural integrity in the uncinate fasciculus 2, abnormal activity in the
anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), and deformations within the amygdala, (Pemment 2). Further,
David P. Farrington explains that antisocial behavior in children appears to be correlated with
physical abuse, parental conflict, and antisocial parents (among a number of other factors), and it
would not surprise anyone if this extremely stressful home life stunted the child's brain from
developing normally, (Pemment 2). Some traits of psychopathy include superficial charm,
lack of remorse, in impersonal sex life, and pathological lying (Pemment 2). Paul Babiak and
Robert D. Hare clarify the difference between psychopathy and sociopathy stating that
sociopaths have traits differing from those listed above for psychopathy. Sociopathy, on the
other hand, is indicative of having a sense of morality and a well-developed conscience, but the
sense of right and wrong is not that of the parent culture, (Pemment 2). Also, a large
psychopathy and sociopathy stating, Antisocial Personality Disorder (ASPD) is 'a pervasive
pattern of disregard for, and violation of, the rights of others that begins in childhood or early
sociopathy, or dyssocial personality disorder' (p. 645), (Perez 519). Perez goes on to point out,
[W]hile the psychopath does not experience feelings of remorse for his or her deeds, no matter
how cold and heinous, the sociopath may be capable of feeling guilt and regret for his or her
deeds, at least in the context of group (such as in gang affiliation) or familial relationships. The
sociopath, however, cares nothing for social norms, and will violate them without hesitation if
doing so satisfies his or her own desires or purposes. (Perez 520). David T. Lykken states,
lack of socialization, while psychopathy can be traced to biologically inherent factors, such as
temperament, (Perez 520). Lykkens list of key characteristics includes a strong need for
stimulation, a complete lack of remorse or guilt, conning and manipulativeness, and a parasitic
lifestyle. The psychopath is a predator who needs to hunt and stalk prey, (Perez 520). Robert D.
Hare states psychopaths will use whatever means necessary, including violence, to control
others and satisfy their wants and needs. Psychopaths display an abnormal lack of conscience
believe so. Two conditions that appear significantly common in domestic violence cases are
Personality Disorder there seem to be issues in the areas of sensation and perception, attention,
and memory bias, etc. With Aspergers Syndrome, problems look to be in sensation and
perception, attention, and judgment and decision making among others. Though the two
resemble each other in the way they manifest themselves in relationships, the pain those who
exhibit Aspergers Syndrome inflict on their spouse or significant other might not be intentional,
whereas the harm done by individuals who display narcissistic personality disorder attributes is
interests (as with classic autism), without a history of language impairment (unlike classic
autism). Individuals with AS demonstrate clear limitations in their ability to take part in
communication and conduct. Unsurprisingly, these limitations often prevent individuals with AS
pattern of grandiosity (in fantasy or behavior), need for admiration, and lack of empathy,
beginning by early adulthood and present in a variety of contexts, as indicated by five (or more)
of the following: 1. has a grandiose sense of self-importance (e.g., exaggerates achievements and
preoccupied with fantasies of unlimited success, power, brilliance, beauty, or ideal love, 3.
believes that he or she is special and unique and can only be understood by, or should associate
with, other special or high-status people (or institutions), 4. requires excessive admiration, 5. has
automatic compliance with his or her expectations, 6. is interpersonally exploitative, i.e., takes
advantage of others to achieve his or her own ends, 7. lacks empathy: is unwilling to recognize
or identify with the feelings and needs of others, 8. is often envious of others or believes that
others are envious of him or her, and 9. shows arrogant, haughty behaviors or attitudes.[B]ased
offensive rather than defensive condition, and no soft inner core of self-loathing is postulated,
Using the concepts in our book, this semester, I would like to focus on some of the
Syndrome and/or Narcissistic Personality Disorder. The table below lists Aspergers Syndrome
Disorder behave in an abusive manner toward others on purpose or without realizing it? As I
mentioned above, when it comes to Narcissistic Personality Disorder there seem to be issues in
the areas of sensation and perception, attention, and memory bias, etc. With Aspergers
Syndrome, problems look to be in sensation and perception, attention, and judgment and decision
making among others. When information is sent to their brain, what happens? Their responses
are not neuro-typical. What do they perceive to be true? Are individuals who are diagnosed
with Narcissistic Personality Disorder and/or Aspergers Syndrome over sensitive? Why do
these individuals appear to have a short attention span? Sometimes individuals with Aspergers
Syndrome are misdiagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. Without attention,
you would quickly become overwhelmed by the volume of sensory information presented to
your brain, (Hill & Park 49). In addition to Aspergers Syndrome, there is Sensory Processing
Disorder which is similar. Sensory processing disorder (SPD) is a condition in which a person
has difficulty organizing and integrating sensory information for use. As a result, individuals
with SPD experience challenges in acting on and adapting to sensory information, making it
(Kahneman 67).
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[T]he role of attention in allowing entry to the conscious mind is notoriously difficult to
define, (Hill & Park 49). [I]nterference can lead to memory distortions, false memories, and
all around memory bias, (Hill & Park 174). Where does information get lost in the mind of a
Personality Disorder? Narcissistic persons claim they remember events and conversations
differently than their spouse or significant other. They use gaslighting to deceive, cause a
victim to second guess herself or himself, and to dominate and control a relationship.
Effective interventions to reduce risk of violence among persons with Severe Mental
psychiatric disorder but also addiction, trauma sequelae, domestic violence, and need for
housing, income, and community support. Our findings suggest that there may be several
specific subgroups within the population of individuals with SMI who are at increased risk for
violent behavior. For example, 1 subgroup may be suffering primarily from the long-term
complications of violent victimization, which may have begun in early life and is recurrent in
adulthood. Addressing violent behavior in this group may require a specific clinical focus on
domestic relationships that may require relationship counseling, conflict resolution, anger
Far more information is needed on domestic violence to help keep women and children,
and some men, safe. A narcissistic person easily goes from one victim to the next, leaving
destroyed lives in his or her wake. Spouses of men or women with Aspergers Syndrome many
times suffer in silence and do not have the support system she or he needs. I believe that with
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the help of cognitive and other forms of psychology, causes of aggression and violent behavior in
people, which leads to domestic violence and other forms of abuse, can be pinpointed and
Work Cited
Abrams, Courtney, Padgett, Deborah K. and Drake, Robert E. Social Relationships Among
Persons Who Have Experienced Serious Mental Illness, Substance Abuse, and
Arias, Ileana, Brandt, Heather M, Coker, Ann L, Davis, Keith E, Desai, Sujata, Sanderson,
Maureen, and Smith, Paige H. Physical and Mental Health Effects of Intimate Partner
Violence for Men and Women. American Journal of Preventive Medicine. Vol. 23,
1992.
Hill, W. T., & Park, J. A. Cognitive Psychology. Dubuque, IA: Kendall Hunt. 2016.
Swanson, Jeffrey W, Swartz, Marvin S, Essock, Susan M, Osher, Fred C, Wagner, Ryan,
Context of Violent Behavior in Persons Treated for Severe Mental Illness. American
Clever, Hedy, Unell, Ira, and Aldgate, Jane. Childrens Needs Parenting Capacity, 2 e. The
Psychology and Science in Domestic Violence Research and Practice. Aggression and
Aggression and Violent Behavior. Volume 17, Issue 6, Pgs. 519-522. 2012.
Pemment, J., Psychopathy versus sociopathy: Why the distinction has become crucial,
Andrew J.O. Whitehouse et al., Friendship, loneliness and depression in adolescents with
doi:10.1016/j.adolescence.2008.03.004
Szatmari, Peter, Archer, Lynda, Fisman, Sandra, Streiner, David L., and Wilson, Freda.
Functioning. J. Am. Acad. Child Adolesc. Psychiatry, 34:12, December 1995. Pgs.
1662-1670.
Russ, Eric, Shedler, Jonathan, Bradley, Rebeka, and Westen, Drew. Refining the Construct of
Hill, W. T., & Park, J. A. Cognitive psychology. Dubuque, IA: Kendall Hunt. 2016.