Facilitadores de la Violencia de Pareja Percibidos por Víctimas y Victimarios: Estudio Exploratorio en el Contexto de la Teoría del Aprendizaje Social / Facilitators of Intimate Partner Violence as Perceived by Victims and Perpetrators: An Exploratory Study in the Context of Social Learning Theory

Resumen Pocos estudios han documentado la percepción de víctimas y victimarios con respecto a los factores facilitadores e instigadores de la violencia de pareja. El objetivo del presente estudio fue evaluar la percepción de víctimas y victimarios de violencia de pareja con respecto a factores facilitadores e instigadores de la violencia. Participaron 27 víctimas de violencia de pareja con edades entre 18 y 71 años (media = 34.25) y 27 victimarios jurídicamente confirmados, con edades entre 19 y 62 años (media = 40), quienes respondieron un cuestionario integrado por una lista sobre factores facilitadores e instigadores de la violencia de pareja y de datos sociodemográficos. Ambos grupos coincidieron en señalar al estrés y consumo de sustancias como propiciadoras de violencia, así como a la madre de su pareja como instigadoras. El diseño de intervenciones para tratar o prevenir violencia de pareja requieren identificar los factores que la facilitan, incluyendo a las familias circundantes ya que podrían no sólo tolerar o justificar la violencia, sino incluso inducirla. Finalmente, se discuten algunas diferencias notorias entre perpetradores y víctimas respecto de otras variables propiciadoras de violencia en el contexto de la teoría del aprendizaje social.

Abstract Few studies have documented the opinion of victims and perpetrators regarding the facilitating and instigating factors of intimate partner violence. The objective of this study was to evaluate the perception of victims and perpetrators of intimate partner violence regarding facilitating and instigating factors of violence. Participants were 27 victims of intimate partner violence aged between 18 and 71 years (mean = 34.25) and 27 legally confirmed offenders, aged between 19 and 62 years (mean = 40), who answered a questionnaire consisting of a list of facilitating factors and instigators of intimate partner violence and sociodemographic data. Both groups agreed in pointing to stress and substance use as propitiators of violence, as well as the mother of their partner as instigators. The design of interventions to treat or prevent intimate partner violence requires identifying the factors that facilitate it, including the surrounding families, since they may not only tolerate or justify the violence, but even induce it. Finally, some notorious differences between perpetrators and victims are discussed with respect to other variables that promote violence in the context of social learning theory.

El Síndrome de Estocolmo: una Revisión Sistemática / The Stockholm syndrome: A systematic review

El síndrome de Estocolmo es un término utilizado para describir una experiencia psicológica paradójica en la cual se desarrolla un vínculo afectivo entre los rehenes y sus captores. Sin embargo, no existe actualmente una unificación de criterios con respecto a su diagnóstico y características e incluso a su denominación de "síndrome". El objetivo del presente estudio fue revisar y sintetizar la literatura internacional existente sobre el síndrome de Estocolmo. Después de analizar los 23 artículos seleccionados a través de la búsqueda en PUBMED, Google Académico, Academic Onefile y EBSCO, se podría considerar que la extensión del término a diferentes casos o grupos es un indicador importante de que se trata de una respuesta instintiva universal de supervivencia, aunque la falta de estudios empíricos podría llevar a la conclusión de que muchas de las características del término se deben a un sesgo informativo

The Stockholm syndrome is a term used to describe a paradoxical psychological experience in which an affective bond between hostages and their captors is developed. However, currently there is no unification of criteria with respect to its diagnosis and characteristics and even its denomination of "syndrome". The objective of the present study was to review and summarize the existing international literature of the Stockholm syndrome. Databases (PUBMED, Google Scholar, Academic Onefile, and EBSCO) were systematically searched. After analyzing the 23 articles selected, it could be considered that the expansion of the term to different cases or groups is an important indicator that it is a universal instinctive response of survival, although the lack of empirical studies could lead to the conclusion that many of the characteristics of the term are due to an information bias

A preliminary study of the prevalence of post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and anxiety symptoms in female adolescents maltreatment victims in Mexico / Un estudio preliminar sobre la prevalencia de síntomas de estrés postraumático, depresión y ansiedad en mujeres adolescentes femeninas víctimas de maltrato en México

Abstract: Introduction: Although child maltreatment is related with psychopathologic symptoms, however their clinical prevalence in the general population and more so in specific groups of age and gender, such as female adolescents, has been scarcely documented. Objective: The purpose of the present study was to examine the prevalence mental illness symptoms ‒such as post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, and anxiety‒ in female adolescent maltreatment victims in Mexico. Method: Fifty-five 12-17-year old female adolescent victims of maltreatment (sexual, physical, and emotional abuse) recruited from four different Mexican institutions were evaluated through clinical scales for post-traumatic stress, depression, and anxiety, in addition to clinical interviews. Results: More than half of the participants presented significant scores of psychopathological symptoms in the three scales evaluated. Discussion and conclusion: The high prevalence of psychopathologic symptoms found in this study suggests that female adolescents who had experienced some form of abuse present highed a susceptibility to develop psychopathology. Results are discussed in the context of their relevance as a public health problem and their implications for professional interventions.

Resumen: Introducción: Aunque el maltrato infantil se ha asociado con síntomas psicopatológicos, se ha documentado poco la prevalencia clínica que tiene en la población general y aún más en grupos específicos de edad y género, como en el caso de mujeres adolescentes. Objetivo: El presente estudio tiene como propósito examinar la prevalencia de síntomas de enfermedades mentales como el trastorno de estrés postraumático, la depresión y la ansiedad en adolescentes víctimas de maltrato en México. Método: Se evaluaron 55 mujeres adolescentes víctimas de maltrato (abuso sexual, físico y emocional) de 12 a 17 años, reclutadas en cuatro diferentes instituciones mexicanas. A todas se les aplicaron entrevistas y escalas clínicas de estrés postraumático, depresión y ansiedad. Resultados: Más de la mitad de las participantes presentaron altos puntajes de síntomas psicopatológicos en las tres escalas evaluadas. Discusión y conclusión: La alta prevalencia de síntomas psicopatológicos encontrada en este estudio sugiere que las adolescentes que experimentaron alguna forma de abuso presentaron una alta susceptibilidad a desarrollar psicopatología. Se discuten los resultados en el contexto de su relevancia como un problema de salud pública y sus implicaciones para las intervenciones profesionales correspondientes.

Performance of the Towers of Hanoi task and cortical electroencephalographic power changes associated with infancy, adolescence, and early adulthood.

The executive functions, which depend on the adequate maturation and functioning of the prefrontal cortex and its connection to posterior zones, follow a process of development as age increases. This work studied changes in the absolute power (AP) of EEG activity recorded in the prefrontal and parietal areas during the performance of the Tower of Hanoi task in children, adolescents, and young adults. Three groups of healthy male subjects such as G1, 11-13; G2, 18-20; and G3, 26-30, years of age were recorded at the F3, F4, P3, and P4 derivations under two conditions: basal and performance of the Towers of Hanoi task. The majority of subjects in G1 failed to complete the task in the allotted time (7 min), while those in G2 and G3 were able to resolve the task quickly and efficiently. During the Towers of Hanoi task, G1 showed an increase of AP in the delta band only in the frontal areas, with a decrease in the alpha1 and alpha2 sub-bands only at the parietal derivations, while G2 and G3 were characterized by an increase of AP in the delta band and a decreased AP in the alpha1 and alpha2 sub-bands in all derivations. These data demonstrate that during the performance of the Towers of Hanoi task, the prefrontal and parietal areas show a characteristic EEG pattern in relation to age. It is probable that the AP patterns obtained in G2 and G3 are associated with the functional changes at cortical levels that adolescents and early adults require to achieve an adequate and fast performance of the Towers of Hanoi task.

Prefrontal-parietal correlation during performance of the towers of Hanoi task in male children, adolescents and young adults.

Potential age differences in the electroencephalographic (EEG) correlation (r) between the prefrontal and parietal cortices during performance of the Tower of Hanoi task were studied. In three groups of healthy males (G1, 11-13; G2, 18-20, and G3, 26-30, years of age) EEGs were recorded at baseline and during performance of the Tower of Hanoi task. The parameters of the task showed no significant differences among groups, though the majority of younger subjects failed to complete it. The G1 group showed increases only in the interparietal r. The G2 group showed an increased interhemispheric and intrahemispheric r in almost all frequency bands, while the r in G3 increased only in selected frequency bands in the right hemisphere. These findings demonstrate that the functional coupling between these two cortices shows a characteristic pattern during performance of the Hanoi task that, while specific to each age group, was not associated with the successful performance of the task.