NCJ Number
222614
Journal
Criminal Behaviour and Mental Health Volume: 18 Issue: 1 Dated: 2008 Pages: 27-38
Date Published
2008
Length
12 pages
Annotation
This study profiled 32 individuals with a history of stalking behavior who were patients at Broadmoor high-security hospital in the United Kingdom.
Abstract
The study found that the majority (n=28) were men, young (median age 29), unmarried (n=30), unemployed, and with low educational achievement. Most had psychosis and personality disorder. They had committed a wide range of unwanted intrusions into their victims' lives, which included threatening communications. The latter had been committed by 55 percent of the sample. Forty-five percent of the sample had assaulted their victims. Using Mullen et al.'s (2000) classification of stalkers, the sample was approximately equally split among three types: "intimacy seekers" (lonely people seeking a close relationship with someone); "rejected suitors" (persistent attempt to reconcile with the victim after a close relationship had been broken off by the victim); "resentful" (seeking revenge for a perceived insult); and "predators" (pursuit of sexual gratification and control). The latter type of stalker is most likely to have a criminal record and to engage in serious sexual violence. Only a small number were classified as "incompetent" (individuals with few normative social skills attempting to start a relationship with the victim). A significant finding was that few of the individuals in the sample had been referred to treatment for their stalking behavior. The sample of stalkers was identified from all patients admitted to Broadmoor Hospital from January 1, 1990 to December 31, 1997. All of these patients had been in the hospital for over 1 year. Data were obtained from Broadmoor patient records, using a screening checklist for stalking behaviors. 2 tables, 2 figures, and 33 references