Researchers analyzed data from the second national Injury Control and Risk Survey (ICARIS-2; N=9684). Respondents were considered victims of stalking if they had been followed and described the experience as “somewhat dangerous” or “life-threatening.” Based on this definition, an estimated 7 million women and 2 million men in the United States have been stalked. Significant factors associated with having been stalked included being female, white, not married or living as a couple, being employed, and being less than 55 years old. The authors recommended research to develop prevention interventions that can be used jointly by criminal justice and public health to reduce the prevalence of stalking and provide services to victims.
These summaries were written by SVPEP staff and are based on original papers published within the last 6 years. The information available on this web site is provided as a public service and does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the U.S. Centers of Disease Control and Prevention, the Arizona Department of Health Services, or the University of Arizona. To conduct an individual search or locate older articles use the Search Summary Database which includes over 600 articles related to sexual violence.
Stalking
Basile, K. C., Swahn, M. H., Chen, J., & Saltzman, L. E. (2006). Stalking in the United States: Recent national prevalence estimates. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 31, 172-175.
Sun, 2007-04-01
Stalking affects 7% of women and 2% of men in the United States at some point in their lives.
Lack of information on the relationship of the stalker to the victim. Description of stalking was limited to two questions, and stalking tactics used were not assessed.
Coker, A. L., Sanderson, M., Cantu, E., Huerta, D., & Fadden, M.K. (2008). Frequency and types of partner violence among Mexican American college women. Journal of American College Health, 56, 665-673.
Fri, 2008-08-01
Partner violence was prevalent among Mexican American women; however, a significant number reported that violence was not a problem in their relationship.
Phone interviews were conducted with 149 women who were enrolled as college students near the Texas-Mexico border. The interviews were structured to assess physical violence (PV), battering, sexual violence (SV), stalking psychological abuse, and lifetime physical violence. Results indicated that 43% of women experienced some type of PV, 5.1% experienced SV, 19.7% were stalked and 30% experienced psychological abuse. Co-occurrence of violence was evident among those who reported physical or sexual violence. The probability of viewing violence as a problem increased with frequency of physical violence.
The sample size was small and women who participated in study may have been more or less likely to experience dating violence.
Johnson, M. C., & Kercher, E. A. (2009). Identifying predictors of negative psychological reactions to stalking victimization. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 24, 866-882.
Tue, 2009-10-13
Women who experience more types of stalking behavior have more psychological problems.
Data was based on responses to the 2005 Texas Crime Victimization Survey. The purposes of the study were: to identify subgroups of stalking victims based on their negative psychological reactions to being stalked and to compare the subgroups by demographic and stalking-related variables. Three subgroups of victims were identified: high (likely to experience all reactions), medium, and low (low probability of experiencing all reactions other than anger) classes. Those who had a higher probability of experiencing multiple negative outcomes were more likely to be: female, have a prior relationship with the stalker, experience greater variety of stalking behaviors, divorced/separated, and received government assistance. Authors conclude that the number and severity of negative psychological reactions differ among stalking victims.
The definition of stalking used was broad and measures may not have taken into consideration all behaviors and reactions experienced by victims.
Spitzberg, B. H. & Cupach, W. R. (2007). The state of the art of stalking: Taking stock of the emerging literature. Aggression & Violent Behavior, 12, 64-86.
Sun, 2007-04-01
The article provides a thorough overview and explanation of issues related to stalking based on the current published literature.
This meta-analysis summarizes the results of 175 studies of stalking. In addition to looking at variations in prevalence between studies, the authors considered the definitions of stalking and described the closely-related set of behaviors termed “obsessive relational intrusion.” The authors created systematic typologies of types of stalkers, stalkers’ motivations, and types of stalking behaviors. Victims’ coping responses and the effects of stalking are also categorized. The majority of stalking victims are women. Because the majority of victims (79%) were acquainted with the stalker, and because half of all stalking was related to romantic relationships, the authors recommended looking at most stalking not only as criminal behavior or psychopathology, but as a type of “relationship terrorism” similar to other types of domestic violence.