The crazy true story behind Stockholm Syndrome — On August 23rd, 1973, Jan-Erik Olsson, a 32-year-old career-criminal and an escaped convict along with 26-year-old Clark Olofsson, his former prison mate, entered the Sveriges Kreditbanken, a bank located in Norrmalmstorg square in Sweden’s capital city, Stockholm. Wearing a think brown wig and “toy-store glasses”, he pulled a loaded submachine gun from underneath his jacket and took four employees hostage who was held in the bank vault for six days.
Inside the cramped bank vault, a strange, positive, compassionate bond developed between the captors and the captives. On one occasion, when hostage Kristin Enmark began to shiver, Olsson draped a wool jacket over her shoulders and even soothed her when she had a bad dream. He also gave her a bullet as a keepsake. When 21-year old bank cashier, Elisabeth Oldgren, complained of feeling claustrophobic inside the confined bank vault, he tied her to a leash and according to the captive herself, he “was very kind enough” to allow her to walk outside the vault. When hostage Birgitta Lundblad couldn’t contact her family members over the phone, Olsson consoled her by telling her, “try again; don’t give up.” These acts of kindness inculcated feelings of sympathy in the hostages and in the words of Sven Safstrom, the lone male hostage, the captives saw him “as an emergency God.”
A more infamous incident than this “Bank Drama,” a term coined by a 1794 New York Times article, is that of Patty Hearst or Patricia Hearst, a famous media heiress who was seen helping her captors rob a bank after a few months of being kidnapped by revolutionary militants in 1974.
As an explanation, ‘Stockholm Syndrome,’ a phrase coined by criminologist and psychiatrist Nils Bejerot, was born.
CAUSES OF STOCKHOLM SYNDROME
Intrigued by this rare phenomenon, Psychiatrist Dr Frank Ochberg, went on to study and define the syndrome for Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Scotland Yard in the 1970s. According to him, the criteria for Stockholm Syndrome included the following –
- A sudden experience of something terrifying and feeling certain that they are going to die.
- Experiencing a type of ‘infantilisation’ – where they are unable to speak or eat or go to the washroom without permission.
When the hostages receive small acts of kindness from their captors, they experience a “primitive gratitude for the gift of life,” and that inculcates a “powerful, primitive, positive feeling” towards the captor.
In hostage negotiation, this syndrome is defined as “the psychological tendency of a hostage to bond with, identify with, or sympathise with his or her captor.”
A forensic psychologist in Rochester, Minnesota, Steven Norton, explained that while Stockholm Syndrome is a psychological concept seen as a survival strategy or a coping mechanism, it is not a formal diagnosis. It is not listed in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) or the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems (ICD-10). According to Norton, the increased fear and trauma may induce sympathetic feelings and that can make the hostages emotionally dependent on the captors, but these symptoms of Stockholm Syndrome could overlap with the symptoms of PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) and learned helplessness.
However, a 1999 FBI law enforcement bulletin states that victims with Stockholm syndrome will exhibit two key characteristics:
- Positive feelings toward their captors and
- Negative feelings of distrust and anger towards law enforcement officials.
This might lead them into feeling that police actions might threaten their safety.
In tune with these explanations, Dr. Dee L. R. Graham, a psychologist and professor at the University of Cincinnati, and her colleagues, described that this rare syndrome is more likely to occur in these following conditions –
- “Victims perceiving a threat to their survival at the hands of their captors.
- Victims perceiving small acts of kindnesses coming from their captors, such as not getting hurt or receiving water and food.
- Isolation of victims from perspectives other than those of their captors.
- Inability of the victims to escape from their situation.”
The display of positive feelings can also be from the captors’ end. A classic evidence of this is Olsson’s remarks – “It was the hostages’ fault. They did everything I told them to do. Why didn’t any of them attack me? They made it hard to kill. They made us go on living together day after day, like goats, in that filth. There was nothing to do but get to know each other.” This even rarer phenomenon is known as “Lima Syndrome.”
This notion that development of positive feelings is bidirectional in cases of captor- captive situation has encouraged hostage and crisis negotiators to develop similar supportive behavioural skills.
Although Stockholm Syndrome is a rare phenomenon when it comes to hostage and captor incidents, the underlying principles of how it develops and works is witnessed in different, yet more common circumstances and situations.
HELD HOSTAGE BY THE ONE YOU LOVE
Battered individuals failing to press charges against their violent abusers, victims denying the presence of violence in their relationships, or men, women or children willingly wanting to stay back with their abusers because of the love, strong emotional connect and deep sympathy, are all examples of symptoms associated with Stockholm Syndrome. Another example is corporate Stockholm Syndrome which takes place in organisations where a supervisor or boss has immense control over the employees and these employees believe that they will eventually benefit if they are compliant.
This terror-bonding or trauma bonding typically happens in women and children. According to psychologist Jennifer Wild, a consultant clinical psychologist at the Oxford University, women who develop a sense of dependency on their partners, might feel less of anger and more of empathy towards their abusive partners, and they might choose to continue staying with their partners despite being victims of Intimate Partner Violence or Domestic Violence.
Similarly, child abuse is another example. When care givers or parents physically and/or emotionally abuse their children, children may deny it or lie about it or choose not to speak up about it because of the protective feelings and the love they have towards their parents or caregivers.
Whether Stockholm syndrome is a myth or it actually exists in reality is still an ongoing debate. However, for the individuals who experience symptoms similar to that of Stockholm Syndrome, it is very hard for them to accept the reality and come out of the abusive relationship. Offering full support and providing a safe space where they feel accepted and loved is something which friends and family members can do to help them.
Amazing article.
Very well written Shatakshi…👍🏻
Interesting read👍🏻
Keep up the good work…
God bless you dear 🙏🏻🙏🏻