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== Context ==
In the 1980s, Donald G. Dutton and Susan L. Painter explored the concept of traumatic bonding theory in the context of abusive relationships and [[Domesticdomestic violence]].<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":11">{{cite journal|vauthors=Dutton DG, Painter SL|date=1983|title=Traumatic Bonding: The Development of Emotional Attachments in Battered Women and Other Relationships of Intermittent Abuse|url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/284119047|journal=Victimology |volume=6|issue=1–4|pages=139–155|access-date=2021-04-21|archive-date=2020-04-26|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200426182305/https://www.researchgate.net/publication/284119047|url-status=live}}</ref> This work was then further studied in contexts of parent-child relationships, [[Sexual slavery|sexual exploitation]], and more. [[Patrick Carnes]] described trauma bonding as "the misuse of [[fear]], [[wiktionary:excitement|excitement]], [[Sexual arousal|sexual feelings, and sexual physiology]] to entangle another person."<ref name="A&R3">{{cite web|last1=Samsel|first1=Michael|date=2008|title=Trauma Bonding|url=http://www.abuseandrelationships.org/Content/Survivors/trauma_bonding.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180510201932/http://www.abuseandrelationships.org/Content/Survivors/trauma_bonding.html|archive-date=May 10, 2018|access-date=July 7, 2018|website=www.abuseandrelationships.org|publisher=Michael Samsel LMHC}}</ref> Traumatic bonding is also described as "a strong emotional attachment between an abused person and his or her abuser, formed as a result of the cycle of violence."<ref>{{cite book|first1=Wendy|last1=Austin|first2=Mary Ann|last2=Boyd|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_ioMN2DNrdoC&pg=PA67|title=Psychiatric and Mental Health Nursing for Canadian Practice|publisher=[[Lippincott Williams & Wilkins]]|location=Philadelphia, Pennsylvania|date=2010|isbn=978-0-7817-9593-7|page=67}}</ref> Carnes also studied traumatic bonding theory in the context of [[betrayal]], which involved the [[Betrayal trauma|exploitation of the victim's trust]] and/or sense of power by the abuser.<ref name=":9">{{cite web|vauthors=Carnes PJ|date=2016|title=Trauma Bonds|url=https://healingtreenonprofit.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/Trauma-Bonds-by-Patrick-Carnes-1.pdf|access-date=November 27, 2020|website=Healing TREE (Trauma Resources, Education and Empowerment)|archive-date=November 28, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201128102731/https://healingtreenonprofit.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/Trauma-Bonds-by-Patrick-Carnes-1.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>
=== Establishment ===
A 2019 case study explores the life of one individual who was groomed. The victim's perception of the abuser as a benefactor, a substitute parent, and a mind controller all contributed to the development of a traumatic bond between the victim and the abuser.<ref name=":12" /> In terms of being a benefactor, the abuser in this case study went above and beyond to give the victim what they needed. From getting the victim a job to gifting them a plot of land for their first house, the abuser was always present as a benefactor. The abuser also acted as a substitute parent, advising and offering emotional support in times of crisis. The roles of the abuser as a benefactor and substitute parent constituted the good treatment necessary to establish a trauma bond. In contrast, the abuser's role as a mind controller involved controlling and dominating tendencies that emulated being brainwashed.<ref name=":12" /> This combination of perceptions established a traumatic bond that the victim found incredibly difficult to break because rejecting the emotional connection as a whole would also involve rejecting the perks and benefits—the trips, the gifts, the treats, the confidante and the caretaker.
Child grooming can be understood from a developmental perspective as well, and the relationship between the victim and the abuser evolves across the lifespan. Grooming starts when the child is extremely young – theyoung—the trust of the child and the family is acquired. The child is given immense attention and is showered with gifts.<ref name=":12" /> As the individual matures and enters adolescence, the abuser becomes a confidante and a benefactor. In the case study mentioned previously, the abuser gave the victim career advice and, picked him up and dropped him off at school. Then, at the onset of adulthood, the abuser provided the victim with land to build their home and became the person the victim brought their partner home to. As the victim's developmental needs evolved, so did the abuser's response, such that the only thing constant was the victim's need for affection. In other words, the abuser was "able to capitalize on [the victim's] relational needs" until the victim was able to meet those needs in other ways.<ref name=":12" />
==== Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children (CSEC) ====
==== Incest ====
Incestuous relationships between parents and children cultivate trauma bonds similar to those prevalent in victims of sex trafficking. All participants in a 1994 study by Jane Kay Hedberg on trauma in adult incest survivors demonstrated some trauma bondbonding with their abusers.<ref name=":10">{{cite journal|last=Hedberg|date=1994-12-01|title=Trauma in Adult Incest Survivors|url=https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/masters_theses/4639|journal=Master's Theses|access-date=2021-04-21|archive-date=2021-05-10|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210510012501/https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/masters_theses/4639/|url-status=live}}</ref> There was a positive correlation between the pervasiveness of the trauma bond and the amount of contact the victim or the victim's close family members had with the abuser: those who self-reported less pervasive trauma also reported sustained contact with their abuser, while those who self-reported more pervasive trauma demonstrated an active avoidance of maintaining a relationship with their abuser. In incestuous parent-child dynamics, the study found that maintaining an unhealthy relationship with the abuser contributes to trauma and sustains the trauma bond.<ref name=":10" /> However, Hedberg cautioncautions against generalizing findings from the study since the sample was small (n=11) and wasn't representative of the general population of incest survivors. {{refn|group=footnote|"Findings in this study could not be generalized to a population of incest survivors, because the sample is small and non-representative. Participants were gathered through word of mouth with no possibility for random sampling. In addition, there were no males in the study, although male victims certainly exist."<ref name=":10" />{{rp|61}} }}
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