Evidence does not support this anachronistic psychological theory. Rather, victims of domestic violence desperately want the abuse to end, and engage in various survival strategies, including calling the police or seeking help from family members, to protect themselves and their children. Silence may also be a survival strategy in some cases. Moreover, enduring a beating to keep the batterer from attacking the children may be a coping strategy used by a victim, but does not mean that the victim enjoys it. Victims of domestic violence have psychological disorders.
More recent theories demonstrate that battered women resist abuse in a variety of ways.
In addition, most victims of domestic violence are not mentally ill, although individuals with mental disabilities are certainly not immune from being abused by their spouses or intimate partners. Some victims of domestic violence suffer psychological effects, such as post-traumatic stress disorder or depression, as a result of being abused. Low self-esteem causes victims to get involved in abusive relationships. In fact, studies have demonstrated that victims of domestic violence fail to share common characteristics other than being female. Victims of domestic violence never leave their abusers, or if they do, they just get involved in other abusive relationships.