Who stalks? A description of patients at a high security hospital with a history of stalking behaviour.
BACKGROUND
Knowledge about stalking, and in particular the people who do it, is limited in the UK.


OBJECTIVE
This study aims to describe a sample of stalkers drawn from the resident population of Broadmoor high security hospital in the UK.


METHODS
Case notes and research database information for 362 consecutive admissions were used to identify stalkers retrospectively. Data were extracted using a stalking behaviour screening checklist.


RESULTS
A total of 33 patients (9.1%) were classified as stalkers. They were mostly male (28), young (median age 29), unmarried (30), minimally educated and unemployed. Most had psychosis and personality disorder. They had inflicted a wide range of unwanted intrusions and communications on their victims, and both threats (55%) and assaults (45%) were common. The types of stalkers were more or less equally split between intimacy seeking, rejected suitors, resentful and predatory, with only a tiny group being incompetent suitors.


CONCLUSIONS
Although this small group of stalkers had been intrusive and attacking, few had been referred for treatment because of the stalking. The screening questionnaire is easy to use and can be done from records. It may be that such screening should become routine in specialist secure hospitals.
Whyte
Seán
S
Three Bridges Regional Secure Unit, WLMHT, Southall, UK. sean.whyte@nhs.net
Petch
Edward
E
Penny
Catherine
C
Reiss
David
D
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000374:Aggression / Q000523:psychology; D000987:Antisocial Personality Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D003415:Crime / Q000523:psychology*; D003702:Delusions / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D005555:Forensic Psychiatry / Q000379:methods*; D006778:Hospitals, Psychiatric; D006801:Humans; D007297:Inpatients / Q000523:psychology; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012920:Social Behavior Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D006113:United Kingdom