ASPECTS OF EMOTIONAL DEPENDENCE,
ATTACHMENT AND MALADAPTIVE INITIAL SCHEMAS IN WOMEN VICTIMS
OF VIOLENCE
Violence against women, Emotional dependence, Attachment, Maladaptive initial
schemas.
Intimate Partner Violence is defined as a set of behaviors of physical, sexual, psychological
violence or persecution, perpetrated by the intimate partner. It is considered a public health
problem and has a social impact on the lives of women victims. Among the factors that
condition the permanence of a woman in an abusive relationship is Emotional Dependence.
This refers to a pattern of behavior resistant to extinction, maintained by intermittent
reinforcement in the cycle of violence. Dependence on a partner and the need to have
someone as a “reference” can lead the woman to submission and subjection to aggression,
ranging from emotional to physical. The present study seeks to verify the relationship
between emotional dependence, attachment styles, maladaptive initial schemas and intimate
partner violence. In order to understand this reality, field research will be carried out, with a
qualitative approach, at the Specialized Center for Assistance to Women. Data collection will
be through semi-structured interviews and other instruments with women victims of intimate
partner violence. Aiming to contribute to prevention in the social context, in knowledge, since
they are risk factors of vulnerability for the victim woman. And provide a basis for prevention
strategies to consider aspects of Emotional Dependence, as well as Attachment Styles and
Maladaptive Initial Schemas, so that the population of women is monitored through treatment
programs and effective assessment protocols that promote healthy relationships.