What the Next Generation of Stalking Victims Consider to be 'Stalking'

• In Event: Stalking and Strangulation: Identifying Coercive Control Beyond Visible Injuries

Abstract

Advances in technology have provided stalkers with a host of new low cost, user-friendly tools to instill fear and psychologically dominate. To date, however, few studies have examined the role of stalking through the use of technology on victims’ perceptions of stalking, as well as their decision to involve the police. Using a national sample of 203 emerging adults who met the legal criteria for stalking, the current study examined the relationship between physical and technology-facilitated pursuit behaviors on victims’ identification of stalking and decision to contact the police. Stalking acknowledgement was associated with physical versus technology-facilitated pursuit behaviors. Stalking victims were more likely to identify their experience as ‘stalking’ when they were followed and/or pursued by a stranger. Conversely, involving the police in stalking cases was more likely to occur when victims were stalked through the use of technology and/or identified their experience as stalking. The findings suggest the need for adapting stalking prevention initiatives to discuss technology-facilitated pursuit behaviors, while increasing the capacity of first responders to identify and collect digital evidence.

Authors

• Patrick Brady, University of Northern Colorado

• Bradford Reyns, Weber State University