Citation

Smoyak SA. Psychiatr. Ann. 2003; 33(10): 641-648.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2003, Healio)

DOI

10.3928/0048-5713-20031001-07

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

The psychiatric and forensic nurses in this sample reported very different experiences with stalking than either the US Department of Justice3 study or the collegiate sample (Smoyak S, Burgess A, Baker T, Alexy E, unpublished data, 2003). The percentage reporting having been stalked was 8% of women and 2% of men for the justice group, and 11.9% total for the student group. More than a third (36.8%) of the nurses reported having been stalked, with 33% of the stalkers in the patient/client category. The design of the study was such that we cannot account accurately for the diagnoses of the patients, nor the types of intimate partner relationships. This finding certainly suggests that further in-depth inquiry is needed, with both qualitative and quantitative approaches. The comparison chart in Sidebar 2 (page 646) shows the differences in other areas, such as the age of the victims and relationship to the perpetrators. Many of these differences can probably be accounted for by the design of the studies and the environments. However, they do indicate the need for more accurate knowledge for professionals in the prevention areas. For example, the clinical sample received far more serious threats than the collegiate sample, but because the instruments differed, these comparisons are made cautiously. The scenarios provided interesting findings, with the stalked group reporting their perceptions of stalking expertence more frequently and more intensely than the non-stalked group. These victims could provide compelling accounts of how the stalking changed their lives. While not a part of this study's design, the effect of culture on how stalking is experienced, understood, and coped with is an area in need of exploration. The stalking literature is largely from Western or developed countries. When I was presenting some very preliminary data on both the collegiate and clinician studies to an audience of psychiatric professionals in London a few years ago, a group of psychiatrists from Greece and Israel could barely contain themselves to wait for the question period. The first to speak, a Greek psychiatrist, said, "You are a silly woman. You waste your country's money. You are stupid, beyond silly. Don't you understand that this is what men do and what women want?" An Israeli psychiatrist added, "Just because people think that Americans and Israelis are joined at the hip, this is not so in all matters. We would not waste scientific time and money to study the obvious. Just call the topic courting, not stalking, and be done with it." How victims and perpetrators are understood is culturally determined. To date, this dimension of understanding has barely been approached.

Language: en