Stalking: Perspectives on Victims and Management

The potential of being stalked is a frightening prospect, in part because of the widespread media attention to the phenomenon, principally highlighting cases in which significant harm toward the victim has occurred. Victims may have little knowledge of how to manage a stalking situation. Civil and criminal remedies may provide some relief, but ultimately victims must manage their own safety in a way that they see as best for their particular situation. In assisting and assessing victims, the issue of false victimization must also be considered. This chapter will explore issues related to the effects of being stalked and methods of management for victims. Although much of the attention to stalking seen in the legal, clinical, and research literature has been related to stalkers and the act of stalking, there has also been a burgeoning interest in examining stalking victims. This allows for a greater opportunity to understand stalking behaviors, and their effects on others, from a perspective vastly different from that of the perpetrator. Moreover, it has become increasingly recognized that stalking creates very negative psychological (and at times physical) harm to victims. Understanding the phenomenology of victimization and victimology can help clinicians work from a foundation when they are faced with treating a person who may be a victim of stalking. Furthermore, although risk assessment and risk management of stalkers are discussed elsewhere in this book (see chapters 3 and 4), it is imperative that there be a mechanism to manage risk from the perspective of the victim. Stalking represents a dyadic tension, and approaches to mitigating risk must be done with recognition of the impact of stalking on the victim. As we discussed in our GAP Committee on Psychiatry and the Law, important questions typically posed by a stalking victim include queries into whether the stalking will cease and whether the victim will be harmed. More nuanced aspects of victim assessment and management include an examination of day-to-day approaches in dealing with stalking behavior.