Risk Factors for Violence in Stalking Perpetration: A Meta-Analysis

Meta-analysis has emerged as the procedure of choice for empirically identifying the general determinants of crime. In 2004, Rosenfeld conducted the first meta-analysis of violence in stalking situations. In this study, we provide an updated quantitative analysis of the violent stalking literature. Working with a sample of 5,114 participants, our findings indicate that approximately 35% (n = 1,059) of stalkers were violent and that almost 29% (n = 604) of stalking victims were injured by their stalkers. Eight significant risk factors were found to be related to stalking violence: prior intimate partner, threats, presence of psychosis, presence of personality disorder, substance abuse, criminal history, violence history, and stalker gender. Implications for risk assessment in stalking and future research directions are discussed.