Predictors of Intimate Partner Violence Revictimization: The Relative Impact of Distinct PTSD Symptoms, Dissociation, and Coping Strategies

What This Research Establishes

PTSD symptoms predict revictimization. Women with PTSD, especially emotional numbing and dissociation, have higher risk of future abuse.

Emotional numbing impairs threat detection. When you can’t feel normally, warning signs that would trigger alarm may not register.

Dissociation increases vulnerability. Disconnecting from present experience can mean missing red flags.

Avoidant coping increases risk. Trying to avoid dealing with trauma prevents the processing and vigilance that would protect you.

Why This Matters for Survivors

Understanding your vulnerability. If you’ve escaped one abusive relationship only to enter another, this research explains why. It’s not about poor judgment—it’s about how trauma affects your ability to detect danger.

Not your fault. Revictimization results from trauma’s effects on the brain, not from character flaws or “choosing” bad partners. Understanding the mechanism shifts blame from you to the actual cause.

Targeted protection. Knowing that numbing and dissociation increase risk helps you take specific protective steps—being extra careful during numb periods, not making relationship decisions while dissociated.

Treatment reduces risk. Addressing PTSD symptoms through evidence-based treatment can reduce revictimization risk. This is another reason to seek trauma therapy.

Clinical Implications

Screen for revictimization history. In patients with abuse history, assess for multiple abusive relationships. This pattern suggests increased vulnerability.

Target specific symptoms. Address emotional numbing and dissociation specifically—these impair threat detection and increase risk.

Educate about risk. Help survivors understand why they may be vulnerable without inducing self-blame. Knowledge enables protection.

Encourage active coping. Help patients develop active coping strategies rather than avoidance. Address trauma rather than avoiding it.

How This Research Is Used in the Book

Iverson and colleagues’ work appears in chapters on revictimization:

“If you’ve escaped one abusive relationship only to find yourself in another, you may wonder what’s wrong with you. Iverson’s research provides an answer that has nothing to do with your worth: PTSD symptoms—especially emotional numbing and dissociation—impair your ability to detect danger. When you’re numb, warning signs that should trigger alarm don’t register. When you dissociate, you miss red flags you’d otherwise notice. Avoidant coping prevents the processing that would restore vigilance. This isn’t choosing bad partners; it’s trauma affecting your threat detection system. Understanding this helps you protect yourself: be especially careful during numb periods, don’t make relationship decisions while dissociated, seek trauma treatment. You’re not broken; your alarm system is temporarily impaired.”

Historical Context

Published in 2013, this study contributed to understanding revictimization—a phenomenon long noted but poorly explained. By identifying specific PTSD symptoms that increase risk, it informed both clinical treatment and prevention efforts.

Further Reading

• Classen, C.C., et al. (2005). Sexual revictimization: A review of the empirical literature. Trauma, Violence, & Abuse, 6(2), 103-129.
• Messman-Moore, T.L., & Long, P.J. (2003). The role of childhood sexual abuse sequelae in the sexual revictimization of women. Clinical Psychology Review, 23(4), 537-571.
• Walker, L.E. (2009). The Battered Woman Syndrome (3rd ed.). Springer.