Stockholm Syndrome

Stockholm syndrome (also called capture bonding or terror bonding) is a term used to describe a psychological phenomenon in which kidnap victims, despite enduring a critical situation, develop empathy, sympathy, or positive emotions toward their captors or even a pathological identification to their captors. Stockholm syndrome was named after a hostage-taking in Stockholm, Sweden, in 1973, and it has since been popularized in media reports of kidnapping and broadly used in psychiatry and criminology, even though the scientific evidence is rather fragile. Thus, Stockholm syndrome continues to be passionately debated among scholars.

After briefly detailing the history of Stockholm syndrome, this entry describes the symptoms, causes, and treatment as well as possible explanations for this phenomenon. Then, this entry discusses the incidence of Stockholm syndrome, focusing ...