They may have feelings of sympathy, empathy, or even love towards their captor, as well as a desire to protect them. Individuals in these kinds of situations may begin to have confusing feelings towards their captor as a result of the above factors.Ī kidnapped person often feelings threatened by their captor, but they are also highly reliant on them for survival.
Definition captor manual#
Stockholm Syndrome is believed to be rare, the Federal Bureau of Investigation estimating that fewer than 8% of kidnapping victims show evidence of Stockholm Syndrome.ĭespite becoming well-known, Stockholm Syndrome is not considered a mental disorder in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) with many researchers denying that the condition exists at all. This condition does not seem to happen in every captive situation, and it is unclear why this does occur at all. It is believed to be a psychological response which can develop of the course of days, weeks, months, or even years of captivity or abuse. The development of Stockholm Syndrome is thought to be a coping mechanism to survive in life-threatening situations. Subsequently, this term has been used to label the condition that occurs when hostages develop an emotional or psychological connection to the people who held them in captivity. They defended the captors and refused to testify against them in court.Īfter this, criminologist and psychiatrist Nils Bejerot who investigated the event named this phenomena Stockholm Syndrome. The hostages reported that their captors treated them kindly and did not harm them. After their release, the authorities found that the hostages had developed strong emotional bonds towards their captors, and even refused to separate from them.
The origin of the term Stockholm Syndrome arose in the aftermath of a well-documented robbery which took place in Stockholm, Sweden, in 1973.įour hostages were kept captive in the bank whilst their captors had a six-day stand-off with the police. In some instances, the victims form bonds with their captors and may even become sympathetic towards them, the opposite of feeling fear, terror, and disdain, which one may expect in these situations.
This has been suggested to mostly happen in situations where there is a hostage and a captor and commonly linked to kidnappings.
Stockholm Syndrome is a condition in which people develop positive emotions and associations with someone who is keeping them captive.