Psychiatry - August 2008 - (Page 41)

TABLE 4. Common characteristics of female stalkers Caucasian Heterosexual Single Age in mid-30s Without children Educated Employed Lack of substance abuse Axis I and II disorders common Victims often known to them Threats and violence possible primary care provider. She called this doctor’s medical practice numerous times, day and night. She loitered in the office building that housed the practice. She made false allegations about a sexual assault involving her physician, and she threatened to kill her physician. Ultimately, both police and the medical board assisted in establishing firm boundaries to prevent the continuation of this behavior. See Table 4 for characteristics of female stalkers. Female stalkers are no exception to this. David Letterman, long-time host of late night television, was plagued by the stalking behavior of Margaret Ray, a mentally ill woman who ultimately committed suicide in 1998.29 Brad Pitt30 and John Cusack31 have also been prey to female stalkers. According to Mullen, et al., most celebrity stalkers resemble the rejected or intimacy seeking stalker.32 Hollywood has capitalized on the phenomenon of female stalkers. Fatal Attraction, a 1987 film, concerns a man who has a one-night stand with a woman who stalks him and terrorizes his family. Misery, a novel by Stephen King that was later made into a film, tells the story of an obsessive female fan of an author who abducts him after his car crashes and then tortures him under the guise of caring for him. Single White Female, a 1992 film, describes a woman who becomes obsessed with her roommate to the point where she assumes her identity. In Wicker Park, a 2004 film, the male protagonist may have been stalked by a woman (but we don’t want to give away the ending).33 behavior. Finally, mental health professionals should be aware of the possibility of female stalkers in both their clinical practice and their personal life, as stalkers may target their care providers. REFERENCES 1. Meloy JR. Stalking: an old behavior, a new crime. Psychiatr Clin North Am. 1999;22(1):85–99. Zona MA, Palarea RE, Lane JC. Psychiatric diagnosis and the offender-victim typology of stalking. In: Meloy JR (ed). The Psychology of Stalking: Clinical and Forensic Perspectives. San Diego: Academic Press, 1998:70–87. Zona MA, Sharma K, Lane J. A comparative study of erotomanic and obsessional subjects in a forensic sample. J Forensic Sci. 2005;38:894–903. Meloy JR. The clinical risk management of stalking: someone is watching me. Am J Psychother. 1997;51(2):174–185. National Center for Victims of Crimes. Stalking Laws. Available at: www.ncvc.org/src. Accessed April 22, 2008. Domestic Violence and Stalking: The Second Annual Report to Congress, July 1997. Washington, DC: US Deparmtent of Justice, 1997. Tjaden P, Thoennes N. Stalking in America: Findings from the National Violence against Women Survey. Washington, DC. US Department of Justice, 1998. Mullen PE, Pathé M, Purcell R, et al. Study of stalkers. Am J Psychiatry. 1999;156:1244–1249. American Psychiatric Association. Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, Text Revision. Washington, DC, American Psychiatric Press Inc, 2000:323–328. Mullen PE, Pathé M. The pathological extensions of love. Br J Psychiatry. 1994;165:614–623. Galeazzi GM, Elkins K, Curci P. The stalking of mental health professionals by patients. [AUGUST] 2. 3. 4. 5. CONCLUSION Women who stalk may make headlines as celebrity stalkers or as the subject of Hollywood films. However, these behaviors are not simply limited to the popular press. In general, female stalkers tend to be single and in their mid-30s and may carry diagnoses on both Axis I and Axis II. A common Axis I diagnosis is delusional disorder, which requires a belief that the object of the woman’s affection reciprocates her feelings of love. Borderline personality disorder is a frequently mentioned diagnosis on Axis II. Female stalkers tend to target people that they know, and they are capable of threatening their victims and even becoming violent. We must be cautious not to underestimate women’s potential for violence secondary to a gender bias. Though there are a variety of motives for their behavior, women do not often engage in sexually predatory 6. 7. FEMALE CELEBRITY STALKERS AND HOLLYWOOD In 1949, Eddie Waitkus, a 29-yearold first baseman for the Philadelphia Phillies, was lured to a hotel room and shot by Ruth Ann Steinhagen, a fan who had been obsessed with him for a number of years.27 Public personas, such as athletes, actors, and television personalities, are a common target for stalkers. This may be because “the mentally ill will develop delusions about whatever is in their environment, and television became an important part of the environment, bringing new people and new faces into their lives.”28 41 8. 9. 10. 11. Psychiatry 2008 41 http://www.ncvc.org/src

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Psychiatry - August 2008 Editor’s Message Editorial Advisory Board Contents Borderline Personality Disorder: Are Proliferative Symptoms Characteristic? Short-acting versus Long-acting Medications for the Treatment of ADHD Baby Stimuli and the Parent Brain: Functional Neuroimaging of the Neural Substrates of Parent-Infant Attachment These Boots Are Made for Stalking: Characteristics of Female Stalkers Managing Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder in the Emergency Department Obstructive Sleep Apnea, Hypoxia, and Metabolic Syndrome in Psychiatric and Nonpsychiatric Settings Improving the Quality of Life in Patients with Alzheimer’s Disease The Process of Getting New Drugs to Market Journal Watch Classified Advertising Information for Authors

Psychiatry - August 2008

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