|
Cyberstalking, much like any other crime, is hard to assess in terms of its
incidence and prevalence within any given population. The reasons for this are
many and varied, though include the fact that the victim may not consider the
behaviour to be dangerous, they may not know they are being stalked or they may
believe that little can be done about the problem.
One of the ways that estimates are derived is through the
examination of the disorder in clinical populations, though this too is inexact
because the perpetrator may never present for clinical treatment. Often,
estimates of the incidence of stalking in the general population are simple
extrapolations of these clinical populations.
While the majority of stalking literature does focus on
erotomania as the most prolific type, there is little support for this stalker
type as the most prevalent (Harmon, Rosner & Owens, 1995).
In the chapter deClerembault On-line: A Survey of
Ertomania and Stalking from the Old World to the World Wide Web,
Lloyd-Goldstein (1998), the author cites that only 20% of male cases in the
original reports of deClerembault (who the disorder is often named after), and
20 - 30% of male cases in Segal’s 1989/1990 estimates were erotomanic. Only
six of the 48 cases of Harmon, Rosner & Owens (1995) study were confirmed as
suffering from primary erotomania, with a minimal finding (10%) of the
non-forensic cohort in Zona, Sharma & Lane (1993) being classified as
primary erotomanics.
Goode (1995) illustrates “the standard psychiatric typology
accepts erotomania as a delusional disorder but…by no means are all stalkers
erotomanics” (p. 30), with Mullen (1997) stating that “the prevalence of
erotomanic syndromes, both pure and clearly symptomatic, is unknown” (p. 10).
Not all of those with an erotomanic condition will present for treatment,
perhaps doing so only if referred by a doctor, or upon receiving an order from
an agent of the criminal justice system.
It has been estimated that approximately 20,000 Americans are
being stalked at the moment (D’Amico, 1997), with somewhat more liberal
estimates ranging as high as 200,000 (Jenson, 1996). Australian data from the
Bureau of Statistics suggests that in 1997 more than 165,000 women over the age
of 18 were stalked (Lancaster, 1998). Further estimates suggest that as many as
one in 20 adults will be stalked in their lifetime and that up to 200,000
exhibit a stalkers traits (Tharp, 1992). Evidence collected by the Los Angeles
District Attorney’s office suggests that of the 600 cases reviewed, roughly 20
% of them involved some form of electronic communication (L.A. Times, Saturday
23rd of January, 1999). Given the latter finding, there is sufficient
evidence to warrant that electronic mediums are in fact providing the stalker
with new avenues for the deliverance of their threat.
The Centre for Disease Control conducted an extensive
telephone survey, funded by the National Institute of Justice, of 8000 men and
8000 women inquiring about their experiences with stalking. Their results
indicate that approximately 8% of [US] women and 2% of [US] men have been
stalked at some time in their life. Also, that an estimated 1 million females
and 0.4 million males are stalked in the US annually (Tjaden & Thoennes,
1997). Results of similar studies would suggest that the majority of stalking
cases are heterosexual in nature, with less than 1% of these crimes occurring
between homosexual persons. Meloy & Gothard (1995) found similar results
among their study of forensic populations, with approximately 90% male
perpetrators with female victims.
In 1987, Harmon and colleagues found that referrals to a
court clinic were in the 0.6% range, while they rose to 1.7% in 1993. We must be
cautious when interpreting these figures however, as they may not necessarily
reflect a rise in the incidence of stalking cases, rather, they may indicate
legal codification of the act, an increase in the awareness of the act (which
could subsequently lead to a rise in reporting), or decreased public tolerance.
The study of the demographics of stalking perpetrators
provides some interesting information. For instance, stalkers are generally of a
more mature age than other clinical and offender populations (Meloy, 1998;
Harmon, Rosner & Owens, 1995; Mullen & Pathe, 1994; Zona, Sharma &
Lane, 1993). Stalkers have usually attained a greater educational achievement
than other types of offenders (Lloyd-Goldstein, 1998; Meloy, 1996) with 42%
having finished some high school, 22% graduating high school, and 6% having
graduated college (taken from the Harmon, Rosner & Owens, 1995 study).
Ethnicity in this clinical population would appear to be predominantly non-white
(52% black, 25% hispanic, 9% unknown, and 0.4% oriental). Lloyd Goldstein (1998)
states that perhaps as many as 10 % of stalking cases involve perpetrators who
are foreign born, perhaps indicating that immigration is a risk factor in some
stalking scenarios (Meloy, 1998).
|
