The presentation addresses the impact of the bystander effect on trauma advocacy and the societal myths surrounding sexual assault and domestic violence. It highlights the psychological repercussions for trauma survivors, particularly focusing on conditions such as PTSD and borderline personality disorder (BPD), along with statistics on the prevalence of violence against women. The document emphasizes the need for awareness and challenge to the narratives that perpetuate victim-blaming and distortion of reality in cases of trauma.

1. THE BYSTANDER BORDERLINE

2. The materials discussed during this presentation will discuss situations in
which potentially graphic sexual and domestic violence has occurred and the
situations and societal responses may be triggering or uncomfortable. Please
feel free to leave the room whenever you please in order to take care of
yourself best. Some of the best trauma advocacy is self-care.
TRIGGER WARNING

3. What do you mean by the “Bystander Borderline?”
This presentation will discuss how our society encourages and tolerates
bystander effect and how this impacts trauma advocacy, trauma narratives, and
clinical/social/judicial approaches towards trauma and trauma survivors.
Notably, a high percentage of individuals who have PTSD (Post Traumatic
Stress Disorder), Bipolar Disorder, and Borderline Personality Disorder are
frequently those who have endured trauma at an early age.
BREAKING DOWN “THE
BYSTANDER BORDERLINE”

4. What is the Bystander Effect?
- Bystander Effect is the phenomena wherein the more people that are present
in a social situation, the less likely one individual is to help another individual
in distress.
- The most well-known example is the incident that occurred with Kitty
Genovese
- Bystander Effect TV example
- Recent example of Bystander Effect
BYSTANDER EFFECT

5. - The Bystander Effect is amplified by myths we have surrounding sexual assault
and domestic violence and expectations of gender roles.
- Some myths and expectations include:
Women are emotional. Women are illogical. Women are crazy. If women argue
with you, they need to get a sense of humor. If women argue with you, they‟re on
their period.
If she‟s wearing a short skirt, drinking too much, being too challenging, going to a
party alone, leaving her drink unattended, etc. etc. etc.: she deserved the trauma
that happens to her.
Most sexual assault incidents happen to individuals by strangers.
If you consented at the beginning, you consented. If you‟re in a consensual
relationship, you consented. If you didn‟t say „no,‟ you consented. If you didn‟t
fight back, you consented.
All women crave relationships. All women want to get married. All women want to
have children.
WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR
CRIMES AGAINST WOMEN?

6. Some examples of how these myths play out:
- “Eight factors tilt a woman towards the „vamp‟ identity: If she knows her assailant; if no
weapon is used; if she is of the same race, class, or ethnic group as the assailant; if she is
young; if she is considered pretty; and if she is in any way deviates from the traditional
housewife-mother role” (Tanenbaum 127).
“If a victim is calm in court, she is seen as not having suffered enough, which indicates she
is not a genuine victim; if she is sobbing and frightened, she is seen as
hysterical, unstable, and thus unreliable” (Benedict 122-123).
-“Other studies conducted in 1987 found that victims are still widely blamed for inviting
rape, while perpetrators are seen as lustful men driven beyond endurance.” (Benedict 13).
-“A telephone survey of 500 American adults taken for Time magazine in May 1991, found
that 53 percent of adults over age 50 and 31 percent of adults between thirty-five and forty
believe that a woman is to be blamed for her rape if she dresses provocatively” (Benedict
15).
- “The language we use to talk about violence is quite literally being taken away from us. In
2004, a Nebraska judge barred the word „rape‟ from the trial of a man accused of...
well, rape. The judge ruled that the language would be too prejudicial. The victim instead
would have to use words like „intercourse‟ and „sex‟ to describe her act” (Valenti 163).
WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR
CRIMES AGAINST WOMEN?

7. -“A year earlier (2006), in Maryland, a state court ruled that once a woman
consents to sex, she can‟t change her mind. Not if it hurts, not if her partner
has become violent, not if she simply wants to stop. If she says yes
once, nothing that happens afterwards is [rape].” (Valenti 146).
- “Similarly, a judge in Philadelphia ruled that a sex worker whom multiple
men had raped at gunpoint hadn‟t been raped at all – she‟d just been robbed”
(Valenti 156).
WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR
CRIMES AGAINST WOMEN?

8. - 1 in 4 women in their life will experience domestic violence. 1 in 4 women will
experience sexual assault in their life.
- Crimes against women are rising four times faster than any other crime.
(DeBecker)
- -54% of rapes are not reported to the police. (RAINN)
- -97% of rapists will never spend a day in jail. (RAINN)
- Victims of sexual assault are: 3 times more likely to suffer from depression, 6
times more likely to suffer from PTSD, 13 times more likely to abuse
alcohol, 26 times more likely to abuse drugs, 4 times more likely to
contemplate suicide. (RAINN)
- Only approximately one-quarter of all physical assaults, one-fifth of all
rapes, and one-half of all stalkings perpetuated against females by intimate
partners are reported to the police. (NCADV)
- There are 16,800 homicides and $2.2 million (medically treated) injuries due to
intimate partner violence annually, which costs $37 billion (Less than one-fifth
of victims reporting an injury from intimate partner violence sought medical
treatment following the injury).
THE STATISTICS

9. - “Gaslighting is a type of projective identification in which an individual (or
group of individuals) attempt to influence the mental functioning of a second
individual by causing the latter to doubt the validity of his or her
judgments, perceptions, and/or reality testing in order that the victim will more
readily submit his will and person to the victimizer” (Dorpat 6).
-“In order to escape accountability for his crimes, the perpetrator does everything
in his power to promote forgetting. Secrecy and silence are the perpetrator‟s first
line of defense. If secrecy fails, the perpetrator attacks the credibility of his
victim. If he cannot silence her absolutely, he tries to make sure that no one
listens. To this end, he marshals an impressive array of arguments, from the most
blatant denial to the most sophisticated and elegant rationalization. After every
atrocity one can expect to hear the same predictable apologies: it never happened;
the victim lies; the victim exaggerates; the victim brought it upon herself; and in
any case it is time to forget and move on. The more powerful the perpetrator, the
greater is his prerogative to name and define reality, and the more completely his
arguments prevail”(Herman 8).
GASLIGHTING AND DENIAL

10. I‟ve presented these facts about the frequency of violence for a reason: to
increase the likelihood that you will believe it is at least possible that you or
someone you care for will be a victim at some time. The belief is a key
element in recognizing when you are in the presence of danger. That belief
balances denial, the powerful and cunning enemy of successful prediction.
Even having learned these facts of life and death, some readers will still
compartmentalize the hazards in order to exclude themselves: „Sure, there‟s a
lot of violence, but that‟s in the inner city‟; „Yeah, a lot of women are
battered, but I‟m not in a relationship now‟; „Violence is a problem for
younger people, or older people.‟; „You‟re only at risk if you‟re out late at
night‟; „People bring it on themselves,‟ and on and on. Americans are experts
at denial, a choir whose song could be „Things Like That Don‟t Happen in
This Neighborhood.‟ (DeBecker 9-10)
GASLIGHTING AND DENIAL

11. - BPD is manifested by a pervasive pattern of instability of interpersonal
relationships, self-image, and affects, and marked impulsivity beginning by early
adulthood and present in a variety of contexts, as indicated by five (or more) of the
following:
- 1. Frantic efforts to avoid real or imagined abandonment. Note: Do not include suicidal
or self-mutilating behavior covered in (5).
- 2. A pattern of unstable and intense interpersonal relationships characterized by
alternating between extremes of idealization and devaluation. This is called “splitting.”
- 3. Identity disturbance: markedly and persistently unstable self-image or sense of self.
- 4. Impulsivity in at least two areas that are potentially self-damaging (e.g.
spending, sex, substance abuse, reckless driving, binge eating). Note: Do not include
suicidal or self-mutilating behavior covered in (5).
- 5. Recurrent suicidal behavior, gestures, or threats, or self-mutilating behavior.
- 6. Affective instability due to a marked reactivity of mood (e.g. intense episodic
dysphoria, irritability, or anxiety usually lasting a few hours and only rarely more than a
few days).
- 7. Chronic feelings of emptiness.
- 8. Inappropriate, intense anger or difficulty controlling anger (e.g. frequent displays of
temper, constant anger, recurrent physical fights).
- 9. Transient, stress-related paranoid ideation or severe dissociative symptoms.
WHAT IS BORDERLINE
PERSONALITY DISORDER?

12. Diagnostic criteria for PTSD include a history of exposure to a traumatic event that meets
specific stipulations and symptoms from each of four symptom clusters:
intrusion, avoidance, negative alteration in cognitions and mood, and alterations in arousal
and reactivity. The sixth criterion concerns duration of symptoms; the seventh assesses
functioning; and, the eighth criterion clarifies symptoms as not attributable to a substance
of co-occurring medical condition.
-Criterion A: stressor. The person was exposed to: death, threatened death, actual or
threatened serious injury, or actual or threatened sexual violence, as follows: 1. Direct
exposure. 2. Witnessing, in person. 3. Indirectly, by learning that a close relative or close
friend was exposed to trauma. If the event involved actual or threatened death, it must have
been violent or accidental. 4. Repeated or extreme indirect exposure to aversive details of
the event(s), usually in the course of professional duties. This does not include indirect
non-professional exposure through electronic media, television, movies, or pictures.
-Criterion B: intrusion symptoms. The traumatic event is persistently re-experienced in the
following way(s): 1. Recurrent, involuntary, and intrusive memories. 2. Traumatic
nightmares. 3. Dissociative reactions (e.g. flashbacks) which may occur on a continuum
from brief episodes to complete loss of consciousness.
-Criterion C: avoidance. Persistent effortful avoidance of distressing trauma-related stimuli
after the event. 1. Trauma related thoughts or feelings. Trauma-related external reminds (e.g.
people, places, conversations, activities, objects, or situations).
WHAT IS PTSD?

13. -Criterion D: negative alterations in cognitions and mood. Negative alterations in
cognitions and mood that began or worsened after the traumatic event: 1. Inability
to recall key features of the traumatic event (usually dissociative amnesia; not due
to head injury, alcohol or drugs). 2. Persistent (and often distorted) negative beliefs
and expectations about oneself or the world. 3. Persistent distorted blame of self
or others for causing the traumatic event or for resulting consequences. 4.
Persistent negative trauma-related emotions (e.g. fear, horror, anger, guilt or
shame). 5. Markedly diminished interest in (pre-traumatic) significant activities. 6.
Feeling alienated from others (e.g. detachment or estrangement). 7. Constricted
affect: persistent inability to experience positive emotions.
-Criterion E: Trauma-related alterations in arousal and reactivity that began or
worsened after the traumatic event: 1. Irritable or aggressive behavior. 2. Self-
destructive or reckless behavior. 3 Hypervigilance. 4. Exaggerated startle response.
5. Problems in concentration. 6. Sleep disturbance.
- Criterion F: duration. Persistence of symptoms (in Criteria B, C, D, and E) for
more than one month.
WHAT IS PTSD? CONT.

14. 1. BPD: 2. A pattern of unstable and intense interpersonal relationships
characterized by alternating between extremes of idealization and devaluation. This
is called “splitting.”
PTSD: -Criterion C: avoidance. Persistent effortful avoidance of distressing trauma-
related stimuli after the event. 1. Trauma related thoughts or feelings. Trauma-
related external reminds (e.g. people, places, conversations, activities, objects, or
situations).
2. BPD: 4. Impulsivity in at least two areas that are potentially self-damaging (e.g.
spending, sex, substance abuse, reckless driving, binge eating). Note: Do not include
suicidal or self-mutilating behavior covered in (5).
PTSD: -Criterion E: Trauma-related alterations in arousal and reactivity that began
or worsened after the traumatic event: 1. Irritable or aggressive behavior. 2. Self-
destructive or reckless behavior. 3 Hypervigilance. 4. Exaggerated startle response.
5. Problems in concentration. 6. Sleep disturbance.
WHERE’S THE OVERLAP?

15. 3. BPD: 3. Identity disturbance: markedly and persistently unstable self-image or sense of self.
• - 5. Recurrent suicidal behavior, gestures, or threats, or self-mutilating behavior.
- 6. Affective instability due to a marked reactivity of mood (e.g. intense episodic
dysphoria, irritability, or anxiety usually lasting a few hours and only rarely more than a few days).
- 7. Chronic feelings of emptiness.
- 8. Inappropriate, intense anger or difficulty controlling anger (e.g. frequent displays of
temper, constant anger, recurrent physical fights).
- 9. Transient, stress-related paranoid ideation or severe dissociative symptoms.
PTSD: Criterion D: negative alterations in cognitions and mood. Negative alterations in cognitions and
mood that began or worsened after the traumatic event: 1. Inability to recall key features of the
traumatic event (usually dissociative amnesia; not due to head injury, alcohol or drugs). 2. Persistent (and
often distorted) negative beliefs and expectations about oneself or the world. 3. Persistent distorted
blame of self or others for causing the traumatic event or for resulting consequences. 4. Persistent
negative trauma-related emotions (e.g. fear, horror, anger, guilt or shame). 5. Markedly diminished
interest in (pre-traumatic) significant activities. 6. Feeling alienated from others (e.g. detachment or
estrangement). 7. Constricted affect: persistent inability to experience positive emotions
-Criterion E: Trauma-related alterations in arousal and reactivity that began or worsened after the
traumatic event: 1. Irritable or aggressive behavior. 2. Self-destructive or reckless behavior. 3
Hypervigilance. 4. Exaggerated startle response. 5. Problems in concentration. 6. Sleep disturbance.
KEEP IN MIND YOU ONLY NEED 5/9 CRITERIA LISTED, MET, TO HAVE
BPD.
WHERE’S THE OVERLAP?

16. - “The BPD category grew out of the original diagnosis of hysteria, which as a medical diagnoses
dates back to the early 1800s. Originally, this term was used when the clinician was unsure of the
correct diagnosis, because the client manifested a mixture of neurotic and psychotic, and thus the
term borderline came into the diagnostic lexicon (Beck & Freeman, 1990). The DSM-IV reports
that the lifetime prevalence rates for PTSD range from 1% to 14% (APA, 1994). Sperry and
Mosak (1993) noted, „the borderline personality disorder is becoming one of the most common
Axis II presentations, seen in both the public sector and in private practice‟ (pp. 356-358). Beck
and Freeman summed up BPD in the following hypothetical dialogue:
SUPERVISOR: Why are you having trouble with Mr. Schultz?
THERAPIST: Because he‟s borderline.
SUPERVISOR: Why do you consider him borderline?
THERAPIST: Because I‟m having so much trouble with him (p. 178)” (Hodges)
Despite BPD‟s prominence as one of the most widely researched disorders, there is no consistent
proof of either its reliability or validity (Becker, 1997; Francis & Widigen, 1987). Furthermore, it
is a diagnosis that has been applied to women at a rate 7 times greater than for men.” (Hodges)
- “A current perspective is that BPD is actually a chronic form of PTSD that has become
integrated into the personality framework (Landecker, 1992; Zimmerman & Mattia, 1999). This
theory maintains that prolonged and repeated stress can result in the development of behavior
patterns that are maladaptive but that cannot be readily distinguished from personality traits
(Kroll, 1993). Thus, many women who have been exposed to chronic trauma are incorrectly
misdiagnosed as having personality disorders, particularly BPD” (Hodges).
WHAT IMPACT DOES THIS HAVE?

17. At its heart, the question of whether the sane can be distinguished from the insane
(and whether degrees of insanity can be distinguished from each other) is a simple
matter: do the salient characteristics that lead to diagnoses reside in the patients
themselves or in the environments and contexts in which observers find them?
From Blueler, through Kretchmer, through the formulators of the recently revised
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of the American Psychiatric Association, the belief
has been strong that patients present symptoms, that those symptoms can be
categorized, and implicitly, that the sane are distinguishable from the insane. More
recently, however, this belief has been questioned. Based in part on theoretical and
anthropological considerations, but also on philosophical, legal, and therapeutic
ones, the view has grown that psychological categorization of mental illness is
useless at best and downright harmful, mislead, and pejorative at worst.
Psychiatrist diagnoses, in this view, are in the minds of the observers and are not
valid summaries of characteristics displayed by the observed (Rosenhan 380).
CONCLUSION