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Stalking Strain, Concurrent Negative Emotions, and Legitimate Coping Strategies: A Preliminary Test of Gendered Strain Theory

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Abstract

Using data from the Supplemental Victimization Survey of the NCVS and relying on theoretical direction provided by Broidy and Agnew’s gendered strain theory, we examine gender differences in the concurrent emotional responses to a type of strain that has not been examined by GST researchers: stalking. In particular, we assess whether males and females experience similar levels of concurrent negative emotions and whether concurrent negative emotions are similarly associated with legitimate coping resources for males and females. We found the co-occurrence of emotions is more typical among females than males and the impact of concurrent emotions on the strain/non-crime relationship appear to affect females more than males. One notable finding that emerged from our results is that the co-occurrence of emotions can have both proscriptive and precipitating effects on legitimate outcomes. The implications of our findings for theorists and researchers are also discussed.

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Notes

  1. Note that since its introduction in 1992, GST has been extended and revised several times. For a current description of GST, see Agnew (2006b, 2011).

  2. For instance, Agnew outlines the specific types of strain likely to lead to crime, incorporates personality traits as conditioning variables, introduces a macro-level component to the theory, and proposes ways to apply GST to study crime and deviance over the life course (Agnew, 1999, 2001, 2002, 2006a, 2006b; Agnew, Brezina, Wright, & Cullen, 2002).

  3. The Model Antistalking Code for States was mandated by Congress to assist the States in their efforts to respond to stalking. Specifically, in 1992, Congress directed the National Institute of Justice to develop model antistalking legislation that would be both enforceable and constitutional. For a more comprehensive discussion on the development of the Model Antistalking Code for States, see National Institute of Justice (1996).

  4. Our measures of negative emotions were not assessed in response to particular incidents. Rather, they capture the emotional responses to any of the seven stalking experiences.

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Acknowledgment

The data set examined for this article was made available by the National Archive of Criminal Justice Data. The National Archive of Criminal Justice Data does not bear any responsibility for the analyses presented here. The authors would like to thank Lynn Addington, Tom Zelenock, and Tim Bynum for their data assistance, and the reviewers for their helpful comments on earlier version.

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Correspondence to Fawn T. Ngo.

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Ngo, F.T., Paternoster, R. Stalking Strain, Concurrent Negative Emotions, and Legitimate Coping Strategies: A Preliminary Test of Gendered Strain Theory. Am J Crim Just 38, 369–391 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12103-012-9179-x

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