Therefore it would seem that although the statistics show a clear correlation, "blaming others" could be construed as an excuse for abusive behaviors, thus removing responsibility from the abuser. Additionally, with respect to women experiencing violence, Harway (1993) relates the Theory of Learned Helplessness to the Social Learning Theory and how it may explain the passive nature of battered women. Harway (1993) believes that the battered woman perceives the situation as hopeless and eventually loses the ability to believe that anything she does will affect the outcome. Although this particular theory has been criticized by some researchers, it has been altered to the extent that "learned helplessness does not result immediately from abuse, but as a reaction over time to battered women's realization their partners' violent behavior cannot be controlled" (p.32). This remains as one of the leading explanations of the learned behavior of battered women (harway, 1993). Social Psychological Theory explains the strong emotional bond that forms between the battered woman and her partner, sometimes referred to a traumatic bonding (Painter & Dutton, 1985). This term is defined as a strong emotional tie that develops between two people when one person harasses, beats, threatens, abuses, or intimidates the other. This intermittent behavior between the couple has been identified as the Cycle of Abuse. The cycle of abuse consists of three stages: (a) the tension building phase, (b) the acute battering stage; (c) the loving and contrite phase or honeymoon phase (Painter & Dutton, 1985). Harway (1998) concurs that it is the repetitive nature of the build up, the trauma during the battering, and the reconciliation that follows that helps bond the battered woman to her batterer, traumatically, and causes her to remain in the relationship. Furthermore, Harway (1998) explains that the period immediately following the battering is experienced by the woman as one of extreme aversive arousal, together with feelings of self-blame, depression, and helplessness.
