Prof. Yael Lahav - Research Projects
Childhood abuse
Our studies investigate the psychological, functional, and somatic implications of childhood abuse among adult survivors of emotional, physical, or sexual abuse during childhood.
Intimate partner violence
Somatic difficulties and trauma exposure
Identification with the aggressor
This study is a novel attempt to understand barriers for self-disclosing and help-seeking among women who suffer from intimate partner violence. We are also examining the somatic ramifications of continuous exposure to intimate partner violence over time.
This project focuses on identifying underlying mechanisms in the relations between trauma exposure and somatic difficulties. Together with Dr. Tami Bar Shalita from TAU, we conduct experiments and surveys that explores the effects of diverse coping strategies in the face of trauma; we explore somatic outcomes such as chronic pain, anxiety sensitivity, and somatization.
Identification with the aggressor (IWA), a concept originally developed by Sándor Ferenczi, is proposed to serve as a mechanism promoting victims’ survival during the abuse by their taking on and adopting their perpetrators' experience. This mechanism may develop as a result of power asymmetry between the victim and perpetrator, when the victim cannot escape, evade, or prevent the attacks.
In 2019, we created a self-reported questioner that assesses identification with the aggressor – the Identification With the Aggressor Scale (IAS). Since then, various studies that we conducted among survivors of child abuse and intimate partner violence have revealed the implications of identification with the aggressor for negative outcomes, such as dissociation, non-suicidal self-injury, sexual revictimization, suicidal ideation and behavior, re-victimization, PTSD and CPTSD.