“I Had to Allow Myself to Heal”: How Survivors of Sex Trafficking Have Experienced Healing From Trauma Bonding-Reference-Cited by-同舟云学术

“I Had to Allow Myself to Heal”: How Survivors of Sex Trafficking Have Experienced Healing From Trauma Bonding

Published:2024-04-23 Issue: Volume: Page:
ISSN:1077-8012
Container-title:Violence Against Women
language:en
Short-container-title:Violence Against Women

Author:

Casassa Kaitlin¹^ORCID,England Gwen²,Karandikar Sharvari¹

Affiliation:

1. College of Social Work, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA

2. Franklin County Municipal Court, Columbus, Ohio, USA

Abstract

Among the many issues facing sex trafficking survivors, the trauma bonds they develop with their perpetrators are one of the most complex and least understood concerns. This community-based participatory research phenomenological study explored this phenomenon by asking: How have survivors of sex trafficking experienced healing from trauma bonding? The sample consisted of 19 female survivors who were all participants in or graduates of a human trafficking specialty docket. Three themes emerged: survivors shared that (a) building trusting and honest relationships, (b) their relationships with themselves, and (c) education all played a pivotal role in the healing they had experienced.

Funder

Coca-Cola Critical Difference Grant for Research on Women, Gender, and Gender Equity | NSP

Social Work Student Seed Grants | NSP

Publisher

SAGE Publications

Link

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/10778012241248458

Reference32 articles.

1. Casassa K., England G., Karandikar S. (2022a). “It’s not love, baby doll. It’s science:” Experiences of trauma bonding among survivors of sex trafficking. [Manuscript submitted for publication]. College of Social Work, The Ohio State University.

2. Trauma Bonding Perspectives From Service Providers and Survivors of Sex Trafficking: A Scoping Review

3. “There's a lot missing”: Treating survivors of sex trafficking with trauma bonds

4. “He Loves Me Hard and Then He Abuses Me Hard”: How Service Providers Define and Explain Trauma Bonds Among Sex Trafficking Survivors

5. Trauma-coerced Attachment and Complex PTSD: Informed Care for Survivors of Human Trafficking