The Perception of Trustworthiness and Emotional Identification in Women Experiencing Intimate Partner Violence: A Behavioral Pilot Study

Background: Research indicates that traumatic events, such as interpersonal violence, can significantly affect how individuals perceive facial characteristics and assess trust. This study aims to explore trustworthiness and emotional perception in women experiencing intimate partner violence (IPV). Methods: Twenty-four women who have experienced IPV and twenty-four control participants completed an online task. They rated the trustworthiness of male and female faces, chose the more trustworthy face in a pairwise task, and identified emotions displayed by faces. Results: The results revealed that survivors of IPV showed lower accuracy in trustworthiness judgments, particularly for male faces, and in recognizing fear in male faces, compared to the control group. Conclusions: These preliminary findings, constrained by the limited sample size, are discussed in the context of the Pathological Affective Dependence theory and a perceptual model of social face perception, shedding light on the complex interplay between trauma, social perception, and emotional processing.