Stalking Victimization and Emotional Consequences: A Cross-Cultural Comparison Between American and Spanish University Students
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
2022
Keywords
stalking victimization, unwanted and intrusive behaviors, cross-cultural study, negative emotions, university students
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
https://doi.org/10.1177%2F0306624X21990816
Abstract
This paper entails a comparative study between a country that has criminalized stalking for almost three decades (the U.S.) and a nation that just recently outlawed the phenomenon (Spain). Employing a sample of American and Spanish university students, we examined the prevalence and types of stalking behaviors and victims’ emotional responses to their victimization. We also explored whether experiencing a particular category of stalking behaviors (i.e., surveillance and approach stalking) triggers specific emotional responses similarly among American and Spanish victims. We found more than two-thirds (36%) of the Spanish students (n = 638) and almost half (48%) of the American students (n = 411) reported that they have experienced the unwanted or intrusive behaviors included in our study. We also found relative to Spanish victims, American victims were significantly more likely to encounter approach stalking and report feeling anxious, angry, depressed, sick, and suicidal as a result of their victimization. Implications of our findings and directions for future research are discussed.
Was this content written or created while at USF?
Yes
Citation / Publisher Attribution
International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology, v. 66, issue 6-7, p. 694-717
Scholar Commons Citation
Fernández Cruz, Victoria and Ngo, Fawn T., "Stalking Victimization and Emotional Consequences: A Cross-Cultural Comparison Between American and Spanish University Students" (2022). Criminology Sarasota Manatee Campus Faculty Publications. 15.
https://digitalcommons.usf.edu/cjp_facpub_sm/15
