School of Psychology

Purpose. Research has demonstrated that certain relational biases exist within perceptions of stalking. One such bias concerns the perception that ex-partner stalkers are less dangerous than those who target strangers or acquaintances despite applied research suggesting the opposite.

This paper presents results from the first survey of stalking victims to be conducted in the United Kingdom. In depth questionnaire data are drawn on to investigate the course and nature of prolonged stalking in 95 selfdefined victims. Findings indicate a pattern of repeated intrusions, a high violence risk for both victims and their loved ones, a dearth of sources of support, and varied police response. Stalkers had higher SES than most other criminals, were ex-partners of the victim in under half of cases, and did not necessarily operate alone.

In a stalking scenario, the prior relationship between and the gender of stalker and victim were systematically manipulated in order to judge culpability and consequences for the persons involved. Written vignettes were presented to 168 participants who responded via seven Likert scales. Stalker-victim relationship had three levels: ex-partner, acquaintance and stranger. In accordance with the 'Just World' hypothesis , the victim was judged as having greater responsibility for the stalking when their harasser was an ex-partner or a prior acquaintance rather than a stranger, and police intervention was felt to be most necessary when the stalker was a stranger. Sex of stalker and victim was manipulated, and the following comparisons proved signi cant: when the perpetrator was male, bodily injury to the victim was seen as more likely and police intervention as more necessary than when the perpetrator was female; and male victims were viewed as more responsible for the scenario and as possessing greater powers to alleviate it. The Just World hypothesis and gender stereotypes provide a plausible account for these ndings. Future research should determine whether criminal convictions show similar biases towards convicting male and stranger stalkers more often than female and ex-partner stalkers. Research in social psychology demonstrates that a range of factors affect how the general public perceive the seriousness of crime and how far people will attribute blame to the victim. Work on bystander intervention, for instance, has shown that the level of perceived intimacy between attacker and victim negatively correlates with the likelihood that aid will be offered to the victim of an assault (e.g. .

It is known that a major world event caused by one group can influence perceptions of other social groups. The impact of the events of September 11, 2001 on religious and ethnic discrimination in the UK was assessed. Of seven ethnic groups, Pakistanis and Bangladeshis, who were primarily Muslim, reported the greatest increase between pre-and postevent discrimination. So, the attacks on the USA by al-Qaeda, a radical Islamic organization, activated discrimination against people of Islamic faith in the UK. These results highlight links between world events and intergroup relations, and may serve to remind norm violators that the harm they do to people of other groups can impact people of groups perceived to share their values, even in geographically distant places.

Very little research exists on false reports of stalking. The current work analyzed questionnaires completed by 357 respondents who presented as stalking victims at antistalking charities in the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. After eight uncertain cases were excluded, the false reporting rate was judged to be 11.5%, with the majority of false victims suffering delusions (70%). Those making false reports differed from genuine victims on several characteristics. For instance, they tended to be older and were less likely to report physical assaults against themselves and third parties than were genuine victims. However, such differences were not significant and did not represent mutually exclusive groupings. Current knowledge suggests that investigating authorities and support groups should judge the veracity of stalking accounts on a case-by-case basis, particularly given the well-documented difficulties related to defining stalking behavior.

A confederate dressed in either smart or unkempt clothing made 18,000 attempts to cross the road at legally designated crossing points. Consistent with their statutory obligation, drivers were more likely to stop than not stop for the confederate, irrespective of the latter's clothing. However, the findings reflected those of previous studies showing that drivers were more likely to stop when the confederate was dressed smartly. Much of the research on prosocial behavior has concerned those who provide or fail to provide help (e.g., Schroeder, Penner, Dovidio, & Piliavin, 1995). In contrast, comparatively little work has addressed factors concerning those who are in need of assistance. Research concerning (quasi-)emergency situations has focused on whether victims are perceived by potential helpers to be to blame for their situation, such that if they are perceived to be at fault, then bystanders are less likely to offer help (e.g.

Drug-and nondrug-related acquisitive crime offences such as burglary, theft, and motor vehicle theft, were compared to assess whether drug abusers were more likely to be apprehended via forensic science techniques. Data were all acquisitive offences committed over a 6-year period within a police force area in England. Drug-dependent offenders committed a wider range of offence types than nondependent offenders, and they were significantly more likely to be detected via their DNA or fingerprints (p < 0.01). A logistic regression (n > 14,000) revealed a number of predictors that influence the detection of the crime by forensic techniques. The results indicate that a number of these predictors are of statistical significance; the most significant of these being drug use by the offender with sex, ethnicity, and employment status also being relevant. Age of the offender and number of offences committed were found not to be significant. Of the four hypotheses considered to explain this, the most likely was thought to be the physical and mental impact of drug use on crime scene behavior. Consideration is given to the disciplines of forensic science and forensic psychology working closely together to distinguish factors that influence crime scene behavior.

Public figures are at relatively high risk of unusual contact initiated by fixated individuals. Prior research on managing the threat presented by public figure stalkers concludes that although direct threats rarely precede attacks, there is usually evidence of pre-planning. Furthermore, some public figure attackers do attempt to communicate with their future intended victim prior to attack. Thus, early warning signs from unusual contact behavior can be a powerful tool in threat assessment and risk management. The current paper offers a systematic concept for managing public figure stalking and constitutes five stages: (i) screening, (ii) first analysis, (iii) passive research, (iv) active research and finally (v) considered management strategy. It is concluded that assessment and management of risk are dynamic procedures, requiring ongoing monitoring and flexibility. Furthermore, although different stalkers will engage in ostensibly similar behavior, their motives and underlying psychopathologies may vary considerably. As such, all interventions require individual construction.

One in every five women will experience stalking in their lifetime (British Crime Survey, 2009/10). Research suggests the lifetime prevalence rate ranges between 12-32 per cent for among women and 4-17 percent among men (see Dressing, Kuehner, & Gass, 2005). The majority of stalking victims have had some form of prior relationship with their stalker. The aim of the current study was to examine whether victim-offender relationship influences police officers' perception of a stalking event. Police officers (N = 132) and lay participants (N = 225) read one of three stalking scenarios where the nature of relationship between the victim and the stalker was manipulated to reflect an ex-intimate, work acquaintance, or stranger relationship. Results revealed that, for both samples, prior victim-offender relationship affected the extent to which the scenario was perceived to involve stalking behaviour, with the stranger stalker scenario endorsed as most strongly constituting a case of stalking. Officer experience of stalking cases mitigated some prevalent stereotypical beliefs concerning stalking (e.g. victim responsibility). The findings suggest that further training is necessary to combat common and prevalent misconceptions surrounding stalking. The importance of understanding how both lay and police responses are influenced by the perceived victim-offender relationship is discussed in relation to the development of public awareness campaigns and police officer training.

Information on the psychological consequences of stalking on victims is scarce. Research has not reported yet about standardised measures of psychopathology or the impact of specific stalking features on victims' psychopathology. The present study aimed to investigate whether stalking victims have a heightened prevalence of psychopathology, and the extent to which symptom levels are associated with stalking features. Stalking victims (N=246) completed the General Health Questionnaire and provided information on specific features of their stalking experiences. High levels of psychopathology were found among stalking victims. Symptom levels were comparable to those of psychiatric outpatients. Seventy-seven percent had a symptom level indicating a diagnosable psychiatric disorder. The frequency, pervasiveness, duration and cessation of stalking were associated with symptom levels, but explained only 13 percent of the variance of the level of distress. It is concluded that stalking victims generally have many symptoms of psychopathology. The symptoms are largely independent of features of their stalking experience. These findings indicate that better therapy outcomes can be expected from therapies focusing on boosting general coping skills and on decreasing general vulnerability than from therapies focusing on specifically dealing with the stalking situation.

Purpose. Stalking has given rise to considerable media interest and public concern throughout the 1990s. The England and Wales Protection from Harassment Act 1997 was introduced to legislate against the crime, but failed to de ne it. This article discusses the diYculties of de ning a crime in which the behaviour of perpetrators is often ostensibly innocuous. Arguments. A review of 12 studies reveals that stalkers engage in very similar patterns of activities. Consequently, it may be possible to create guidelines for what does and does not constitute stalking. Next, a simple method of constructing stalker typologies is suggested, the classi cation being aVected by the manner in which stalking is de ned. Conclusions. It is suggested that the diYculties inherent in framing anti-stalking legislation may have been overestimated and that existing academic research can provide at least a working de nition of the crime, provided that a common system of classifying stalking cases is adopted.

This paper introduces the Public Figure Preoccupation Inventory (PFPI), bridging the theoretical and empirical gap between 'everyday' celebrity worship and unhealthy preoccupation with a celebrity or other public figure. In Study 1, 1162 respondents completed the 50-item PFPI, where items relate to attitudes and behaviours towards a favourite celebrity. Based on factor analytic techniques a model of public figure preoccupation was devised. In a second study (N = 215), the new model was then compared to disassociation and absorption scores to provide a greater clinical understanding of public figure preoccupation and its psychological correlates.