Critical Evaluation: A Study of Women Who Stalk - Psychology Report

This report critically evaluates the article "A Study of Women Who Stalk" by Purcell, Pathé, and Mullen (2001). The critique examines the article's strengths and weaknesses, including its definition of stalking, methodology, and findings regarding female stalkers' psychology, behavior, motivation, and propensity for violence. The report references additional literature to analyze sampling issues, demographic profiles, and the duration of stalking. The analysis highlights the article's contributions while also pointing out limitations, such as the insufficient data and the need for more detailed comparisons between male and female stalkers. The report also explores the impact of stalking on victims and the need for therapists to understand the psychological aspects of stalking behavior.

RUNNING HEAD: Psychology 0
Psychology

Psychology 1
Introduction
Stalking has been considered as a substantial criminal injustice and public health problem. It
contains of a series of legal behaviour. The elements comprised by the act of stalking are a
pattern of repeated unwanted behaviour, depression in the victim and determined on the part
of criminal to cause them. Stalking by women is common. According to community based
studies, women are acknowledged as offenders in 12-13% of the cases. The higher rates
indicate a greater incidence of erotomania in the population.
There is high frequency of women being engage in stalking. Still, there is no
evidence till date which can prove such behavior emerged among women. There is also no
study which can prove that female stalkers diverge from the male complements in association
to stalking. Awareness and extreme attention should be given to this issue due to various
reasons (Schwartz-Watts, Morgan & Barnes, 1997). The persons who find themselves the
object of female stalker should oppose insignificance from law enforcement. The male
victims have also experienced that their complaint has been terminated. Some victims also
confronted that they were pleased by the entire situation. There are also incidences when
same genders are stalked by the women (Ngo, 2018). In this case, the sexual orientation of
the victims is questioned. There can be even homosexual motives behind this. The studies on
victimization have indicated that women are generally accused for stalking crimes with the
criminal justice interference. There are also evidences which also suggest that stalking by the
women has to be afforded degree of solemnity attached to harassment committed by men
(Kamphuis, & Emmelkamp, 2000).
Women stalkers are comparatively less than the male stalkers. More crime offenses
are also committed by the male stalkers. Female stalkers are more anticipated to target
professional contacts and believe less in harassing strangers. When it is compared to men
stalking, women stalking are good as less substance abuse were noted among them (Breiding,
et al. 2015). The article has been reviewed with the aim of examining whether female stalkers
vary from male counterparts in psychology, behavior, motivation, and propensity for
violence. This article has defined stalking in the proper and good manner by using proper
demographic profile (Myers, Nelson & Forke, 2016). As a study conducted on 190 stalkers
revealed that 21% were female within the age of 15-60. A few women were in a stable
intimate relationship when it came to commencing stalking activities. Most of the female

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were single, separated or divorced. Most females were even working and just 35% were
jobless. The age revealed of male and female stalkers is the same; they do not vary in age
(Fisher, Cullen & Turner, 2002). Although, female stalkers reported to have less criminal
offenses than the male stalkers. Five categories of stalking motivation have been properly
identified in the article like intimacy seekers, stalking arising from the desire of establishing a
relationship, loving closeness with the casualty, in most instances and a professional contact
(Purcell, Pathe & Mullen, 2005). The demographic features of both women and men stated to
a community scientific mental health clinic due to their stalking behavior. It revealed that the
female stalkers did not vary from the male counterparts in terms of the demographic profiles.
Male stalkers were proved to have more criminality cases (Jordan, Wilcox & Pritchard,
2007). The duration of stalking also differs between male and female along with the threat
and violence rates. The female stalkers aim to make professional contacts with a broad range
of activities (Ciceraro, 2010). Very fewer cases of same-gender stalking are found among the
women, 91% pursued victims of being the opposite sex. Very fewer cases were revealed of
same-gender stalking mong women. Just two women in the article committed to being
homosexual. The women considered the desire of going in an intimate relationship as a desire
to stalk. The article has appropriately evaluated the risk of violence posed by the patients who
have stalked, harassed or threatened (Dardis, Amoroso & Iverson, 2017).
On the contrary, female stalkers are not less than their male counterparts to impend
their victims or attack. However, male stalkers are more anticipated to progress from overt
threats to physical assaults (Sheridan, Arianayagam & Chan, 2019). The tenacity of both men
and women stalkers applied to the quest is strikingly comparable. The article has not been
successful in proving that there are less female stalkers in the comparison of the male stalkers
(Meloy & Boyd, 2003). The contexts of stalking vary between both men and women. No
reason is given in the article proving that there is less impact of being stalked by a female.
Insufficient data is being used. Women are predominant victims of stalking but a significant
minority of the stalking has not been appropriately defined. Stalking affects the ability to do
work in various ways (Peytchev, Baxter & Carley-Baxter, 2009). The victim faces
interference with work attendance or productivity. It also puts an impact on the workplace as
insecurity is felt. It even affects women’s ability to working and is suffered from emotional
consequences. The female stalkers tend to adopt advanced behaviors which enable them to
connect with their victims. They are also more patient, tough and do not easily express anger.
The female's stalkers are isolated with a high degree of mental illness and character logical

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disturbance (Logan, et al. 2007). The desire for establishing an intimate relationship is only
the reason which is identified of women stalking. (Purcell, Pathé & Mullen, 2001).
Conclusion
The study should be done in more detail which can compare male and female stalkers.
More comparison should be done to highlight the difference among the genders. The mental
illness is critical to the tenacity of stalking behavior but the therapists offering treatment are
required to be aware of vulnerability as inherited in their roles. The study could even compare
female stalkers to the male stalkers in the more advanced way due to differences in the
demographic characteristics along with the motivation and duration of stalking.

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References
Breiding, M. J., Smith, S. G., Basile, K. C., Walters, M. L., Chen, J., & Merrick, M. T.
(2015). Prevalence and characteristics of sexual violence, stalking, and intimate
partner violence victimization—National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence
Survey, United States, 2011. American journal of public health, 105(4), E11.
Ciceraro, L. D. (2010). Sex differences in stalking and obsessive relational intrusion: Two
meta-analyses. Partner Abuse, 1(3), 259.
Dardis, C. M., Amoroso, T., & Iverson, K. M. (2017). Intimate partner stalking:
Contributions to PTSD symptomatology among a national sample of women
veterans. Psychological trauma: theory, research, practice, and policy, 9(S1), 67.
Fisher, B. S., Cullen, F. T., & Turner, M. G. (2002). Being pursued: Stalking victimization in
a national study of college women. Criminology & Public Policy, 1(2), 257-308.
Jordan, C. E., Wilcox, P., & Pritchard, A. J. (2007). Stalking acknowledgement and reporting
among college women experiencing intrusive behaviors: Implications for the
emergence of a “classic stalking case”. Journal of Criminal Justice, 35(5), 556-569.
Kamphuis, J. H., & Emmelkamp, P. M. (2000). Stalking–a contemporary challenge for
forensic and clinical psychiatry. The British Journal of Psychiatry, 176(3), 206-209.
Logan, T. K., Shannon, L., Cole, J., & Swanberg, J. (2007). Partner stalking and implications
for women’s employment. Journal of interpersonal violence, 22(3), 268-291.
Meloy, J. R., & Boyd, C. (2003). Female stalkers and their victims. JOURNAL-AMERICAN
ACADEMY OF PSYCHIATRY AND THE LAW, 31, 211-219.
Myers, R. K., Nelson, D. B., & Forke, C. M. (2016). Occurrence of stalking victimization
among female and male undergraduate students. Journal of College Student
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Ngo, F. T. (2018). Same-Sex and Opposite-Sex Stalking in the United States: An Exploration
of the Correlates of Informal and Formal Coping Strategies of the
Victims. International Journal of Criminal Justice Sciences, 13(1).

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Peytchev, A., Baxter, R. K., & Carley-Baxter, L. R. (2009). Not all survey effort is equal:
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Purcell, R., Pathe, M., & Mullen, P. E. (2005). Association between stalking victimisation
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Schwartz-Watts, D., Morgan, D. W., & Barnes, C. J. (1997). Stalkers: The South Carolina
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Sheridan, L., Arianayagam, J., & Chan, H. C. (2019). Perceptions and experiences of
intrusive behavior and stalking within a culture. Psychology, Crime & Law, 25(4),
381-395.