NCJ Number
176316
Journal
Journal of Interpersonal Violence Volume: 12 Issue: 3 Dated: June 1997 Pages: 420-432
Date Published
1997
Length
13 pages
Annotation
This article examines the behavioral definition of stalking, investigates the role stalking plays in the cycle of domestic violence and develops demographic profiles of stalkers and their victims.
Abstract
A total of 141 female undergraduates completed a questionnaire designed to assess the occurrence of threatening or violent behaviors in former heterosexual, romantic relationships. Subjects were placed in a control, harassed or stalked group based on their responses to several questions on Florida's antistalking law. The Conflict Tactics Scale was used to assess the presence of domestic violence during the relationships, and the Stalking Behavior Checklist was used to measure the occurrence of stalking behaviors after the relationship had ended. Subjects who reported significantly more verbal and physical abuse during the relationships were more likely to be stalked by their former partners after the relationships ended. No clear demographic profile emerged that discriminated the stalking victims and perpetrators from partners in relationships that did not involve stalking. Tables, references