Double binds are situations in which there is no good solution. It’s choosing between the least of two evils. You’re damned either way. It’s can be a covert trauma.
This article will be updated with further research and sources soon.
Sources
DEVELOPING THE COVERT TRAUMATIC EXPERIENCE SCALE (COTES): A RETROSPECTIVE EARLY PSYCHOSOCIAL TRAUMA ASSESSMENT TOOL
Tiffany E. Vastardis PhD, LMHC, CCTP, CMHIMP
Clinical Education Specialist • Florida Residential Clinical Training Liaison • Mental Health Researcher • Licensed Psychotherapist • Clinical Trauma Specialist • Integrative Medicine Practitioner
Double Binds
The term, double bind, was first introduced to mental health-related literature by
Gregory Bateson in 1956, and was coined in efforts for a psychoanalytic means by which
to rationalize the development of psychosis as a by-product of dysfunctional family
dynamics (Caillot, 2005). While the proposed causal link between double binds and the
onset of Schizophrenia Spectrum Disorders has, since, been rejected, researchers
continued to investigate the nature of the correlation within the past two decades (Zuk &
Zuk, 1998a; Zuk & Zuk, 1998b). The term has two related, yet similar meanings, the first
of which pertains to the issuing of discrepant messages within a household, and the
second of which relates to “either-or” situations, or in other words, “damned if you do
and damned if you don’t” predicaments (Mozdzierz et al., 1985). From an Adlerian
perspective, both meanings still retain clinical value, as they can serve as models for
understanding the development of neuroses or anxiety-related symptomology, as a result
of the confusion born from such contradictory early experiences (Mozdzierz et al., 1985).
In fact, many theorists consider early exposure to double binds to be a form of childhood
emotional abuse (Moulding, 2017).
