Personality Profiles in Abused Women Receiving Psychotherapy According to the Existence of Childhood Abuse

This study explores the personality profiles and the influence of childhood abuse on personality profiles of a group of 142 female victims of intimate partner violence (IPV) who attended a specialized, free care, public outpatient psychological care service in Spain. Characteristics of the abuse were obtained through a semi-structured interview, and personality profiles were assessed using the Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory-II (Millon, 1983/1999), validated for the Spanish population. Results revealed that most of the women showed elevations on the basic personality scales, especially on the Dependent, Avoidant, Self-defeating, and Compulsive scales. Women who suffered childhood abuse presented greater elevations in Avoidant, Antisocial, Passive-Aggressive, Self-defeating, and Borderline scales. The importance of studying the effects of violence in intimate relationships in order to analyze prevention and intervention strategies is discussed.