9/29/2020
Emulation, as defined by Merriam-Webster, is the ambition or endeavor to equal or excel others (Merriam). However, in some cases, emulation is not an ambition. In fact, it’s not even a conscious choice.
Psychologists and social scientists have theorized for years that early relationships in an individual's life have an effect on future ones: for example, someone who grows up in a healthy family dynamic is more likely to have healthy romantic relationships as an adult (Rutkowski).
In recent years, the idea of emulation has been introduced to this theory. Perhaps, some scientists believe, there’s a pattern to the relationships people experience in their life: maybe there is an underlying common denominator in people that an individual associates with, from family to friends to romantic partners. It’s common knowledge that those abused in childhood get stuck in an endless loop, finding and staying with partners who also treat them poorly. But, is there any science to back up this supposed trend?
According to Dutch psychiatrist Bessel van der Kolk, there is. In his research paper, The Compulsion to Repeat the Trauma, van der Kolk explores how trauma permanently disturbs the capacity to deal with future challenges, comparable to an “deceiving guiding hand” (Van der Kolk). He compiled multiple studies that showed the same results in all different groups: women abused in childhood were more likely to be abused as adults, men abused by their fathers are more likely to become abusers, and so on (Russel).
Simply put, people subconsciously find comfort in familiarity, even if associated with negatives such as physical harm. Abusers commonly have similar traits: over protectiveness, narcissism, hypersensitive yet detached (Reyes). These are recognized later in adulthood in romantic partners, providing former victims with a subconscious feeling of easement. Psychologists are theorizing that this is all due to neurons in the brain; so malleable in childhood and adolescence, as the brain is beginning to develop. Once these pathways are dug, they’re deep and hard to reverse (McLeod).
However, this theory is still in this infancy. Though more formal research with van der Kolk started in 1989, it’s still not totally clear what causes victims of abuse to subliminally pursue that in their adult lives. However, the correlation is very clear: victims of abuse in childhood are more likely to be abused into their adult life.
Works Cited
McLeod, Saul. "Attachment Theory." Simply Psychology, 5 Feb. 2017, www.simplypsychology.org/attachment.html. Accessed 24 Sept. 2019.
Merriam-Webster. "Emulation." Merriam-Webster, www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/emulation. Accessed 23 Sept. 2019.
Reyes, Zoe. "How Childhood Trauma Affects Adult Relationship." Psych Central, 8 July 2018, psychcentral.com/blog/how-childhood-trauma-affects-adult-relationships/. Accessed 24 Sept. 2019.
Rutkowski, Claire. "Early Family Experience Affects Later Romantic Relationships." National Institutes of Health, 31 July 2018, www.nih.gov/news-events/nih-research-matters/early-family-experience-affects-later-romantic-relationships. Accessed 23 Sept. 2019.
Van der Kolk, Bessel. "The Compulsion to Repeat the Trauma." Psychiatric Clinics of North America, www.traumacenter.org/products/pdf_files/Compulsion_to_Repeat.pdf. Accessed 24 Sept. 2019.