Substance Abuse and Abuse Q 45
Mrs. Smith was admitted to the emergency department of Nurseslabs Medical Center with a fractured arm. She explains to the nurse that her injury resulted when she provoked her drunken husband, Mr. Smith, who then pushed her. Which of the following best describes the nurse’s understanding of the wife’s explanation?
A. Mrs. Smith's explanation is appropriate acceptance of her responsibility.
B. Mrs. Smith's explanation is an atypical reaction of an abused woman.
C. Mrs. Smith's explanation is evidence that the woman may be an abuser as well as a victim.
D. Mrs. Smith's explanation is a typical response of a victim accepting blame for the abuser.
Correct Answer: D. Mrs. Smith’s explanation is a typical response of a victim accepting blame for the abuser.
Self-blame is a common psychological response to a woman who is a victim of abuse. In this situation, the message that violence occurred because the woman provoked the abuser is accepted and owned by the victim; however, the victim is not responsible for the violence. Social reactions are associated with whether and how survivors blame themselves for the assault (Ullman & Najdowski, 2011). For example, fewer positive responses are associated with more self-blame of survivors (Wyatt, Newcomb & Notgrass, 1991). Survivors may also already blame themselves for the assault, and negative reactions from others could strengthen that self-blame.
Option A: Self-blame is a central construct in the assault recovery field theorized to be related to the loss of control that occurs during the assault and internalized feelings of responsibility for the assault happening and/or for one’s responses to it. Such beliefs about responsibility for being assaulted are a rape myth or false belief commonly adhered to in American society. Many survivors blame themselves in the aftermath of their victimization and self-blame is related to greater psychological distress and increased risk of revictimization.
Option B: Self-blame plays a role in the adjustment of assault survivors (Frazier, 1990). Behavioral self-blame (BSB) is when survivors attribute the assault to their actions and characterological self-blame (CSB) is when survivors attribute the assault to their character. Both BSB and CSB have been associated with poorer survivor adjustment, but CSB has stronger negative effects, possibly because CSB refers to a person’s character and is therefore more personal and difficult to change than a simple instance of behavior.
Option C: Self-blame tends to be most common soon after sexual assault and is more common than for victims of other traumatic events (including other crimes), possibly because society expects women to prevent sexual assault, to resist if attacked, and people disbelieve women reporting sexual assault more than other crimes (Ullman, 2010).