A descriptive study of child and adolescent obsessional followers.

This study is a preliminary descriptive investigation of the phenomenon of stalking in children and adolescents. Data on offender characteristics, victim characteristics, and stalking patterns were examined in a sample of 13 obsessional followers ranging in age from 9 to 18. Many research findings from investigations on adults who stalk were replicated in this study, including the fact that most stalking offenders are male, most victims are female, and about half of stalking cases involve threats made toward the victim. In addition, the rate of violence was 31% in this sample of juvenile stalking offenders and the most common methods of stalking were physical approach, telephone calls, and letter writing. Some interesting trends in the data emerged which require further study and suggest some differences may exist between juvenile and adult stalking offenders. The results are preliminary and suggest directions for future research.