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Encyclopedia of Criminology and Criminal Justice pp 5026–5038Cite as

Stalking

Synonyms

Harassment, Threat assessment

Overview

Stalking affects hundreds of thousands of people around the world every year, and criminal justice and mental health professionals are often required to manage or treat stalkers or their victims. This entry provides an overview of the phenomenon of stalking, its legal status, explanatory models, and victimology and impact. A detailed description of best-practice assessment procedures for perpetrators and victims and treatment/management considerations for both groups is also provided.

Fundamentals

What Is Stalking?

Stalking is a problem behavior characterized by repeated and unwanted intrusions inflicted by one person upon another in a manner that causes reasonable fear and/or distress. Intrusions typically come in the form of unwanted communications, such as those via telephone (including SMS), electronic media (e-mail, social networking websites), letters, or graffiti. In many stalking episodes, intrusions will also take the form of...

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Recommended Reading and References

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Forensic Behavioural Science, Monash University and the Victorian Institute of Forensic Mental Health, 505 Hoddle St, Clifton Hill, VIC 3068, Melbourne, Australia

    Troy McEwan

  2. Queensland Forensic Mental Health Service and Griffith University, 56 Little Edward St, Brisbane, QLD 4001, Brisbane, Australia

    Michele Pathé

Authors
  1. Troy McEwan
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  2. Michele Pathé
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Troy McEwan .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Netherlands Institute for the Study of Crime and Law Enforcement (NSCR), Amsterdam, The Netherlands

    Gerben Bruinsma

  2. VU University Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

    Gerben Bruinsma

  3. Department of Criminology, Law and Society, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA, USA

    David Weisburd

  4. Faculty of Law, The Hebrew University, Mt. Scopus, Jerusalem, Israel

    David Weisburd

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McEwan, T., Pathé, M. (2014). Stalking. In: Bruinsma, G., Weisburd, D. (eds) Encyclopedia of Criminology and Criminal Justice. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-5690-2_535

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