Elements of psychological violence are found in almost every Russian family. At the same time, over time, it changes from hidden to obvious in 70-80% of couples, writes NEWS.ru with reference to clinical psychologist Valentin Denisov-Melnikov.
He noted that psychological abuse can manifest itself as manipulation of a partner – in this case, a person requires a lot of attention to himself and makes a loved one feel obligated. Also, a partner can be pressured with complaints, requests and persuasion instead of constructively asking for help in solving a particular problem, or devaluing the partner’s words, actions and emotions.
On the part of men, psychological violence often manifests itself in the form of machismo, when a person exhibits hypertrophied masculinity, shown through rudeness, domination and directiveness.
The victim of psychological abuse must show the abuser that she is on an equal footing with him and is not going to take the position of a child who is being reprimanded. One should behave calmly and not react to provocations, experts advise.