Topic > Stalking Victimization and Substance Use in College Dating Relationships

IndexIntroduction/ContextFoundationsMethodology and DesignResultsDiscussion and ConclusionsIntroduction/ContextMost research in the field of violence has focused on physical abuse, with very little attention to other forms of violence. Only in recent years have researchers begun to study the effects of psychological disorders. But because stalking is an issue that has been largely ignored, research has delved into stalking victimization. Not only the prevalence of this problem but also the psychological effects. Additionally, the researchers in this article examined the correlation between the psychological effects of stalking victimization and other aspects of dating violence. Additionally, a link between stalking victimization and substance abuse has also been studied, with some positive findings. The sample size consists primarily of college students of both genders who are in intimate relationships. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay The National Institute of Justice has estimated that in the United States alone, more than 1 million women and half a million men are victims of stalking each year. The vast majority of stalking victims were persecuted by someone known to them, only a small minority (23% of women and 36% of men) were persecuted by strangers. The definition of stalking is broad and can vary greatly, virtually any unwanted communication between two individuals that induces a feeling of fear or danger in an individual constitutes stalking. Identifying stalkers has proven to be very difficult as they have no particular profile to get noticed. Most stalkers have some form of prior association with their victims and most likely a romantic association. In the typical case of stalking victimization, the stalker establishes unwanted contact and, after being discouraged, the situation can degenerate into violence. A study by the Bureau of Justice Statistics classified stalking victims based on four distinct variables. First, age was an essential factor and had a direct correlation with stalking. Individuals between the ages of 18 and 25 are at the highest risk of falling victim to stalking, while as age increases the likelihood of stalking decreases. Second, race and ethnicity have also been studied, and mixed-race and White individuals have been found to be at the highest risks of experiencing individuals (Villacampa, 2017). At the same time, Asians are less likely to be victims of stalking. Third, the marital situation was also studied and it was concluded that divorced and separated people are at greater risk of stalking, while married and widowed people are less likely to experience stalking (Stermac, 2018). Finally, income was also examined and an inverse correlation was found: people with a higher income were less likely to be victimized, while people residing in low-income neighborhoods and families are at the highest risk of being victimized . While profiling the offenders Four almost similar characteristics were examined, as well as two others. First, the stalker is very likely to target victims of the same age group (Scott, 2019). At the same time, a similar correlation was discovered across racial lines. Most African American offenders targeted predominantly black victims, and this pattern was repeated with offenders and victimswhite. Unlike other crimes, where the victim and offender come into direct contact, a considerable number of stalking victims were unable to identify the sex of the offenders (Raj, 2017). In comparison, most victims reported being persecuted by the person from their place of origin. opposite gender. Finally, when investigating the relationship between perpetrators and victims, 75% of victims identified their perpetrators most commonly as previous intimate partners, acquaintances, and friends (Korkodeilou, 2020). While other parameters such as employment status and criminal record do not have a significant impact regarding the profile of offenders, with illegal education and employment they were equal in number to stalkers with a clean past, with law enforcement and status inactive. Reason The article presented arguments that highlighted the seriousness of the crime. the issues, with particular emphasis on the lack of written literature on stalking victimization and, in particular, focusing on substance abuse with a study sample consisting of college students. The article cited some studies that indicated a higher rate of dating violence among college students. Therefore, researchers investigated the severity of stalking victimization at universities. The article missed several critical classifications to narrow the sample size. Although fundamentally, the logic was not flawed, but the division or at least exploration of victims and perpetrators based on various variables such as age, race, income group was ignored (DeKeseredy, 2017). The classification has been key to profiling offenders and helping stalking victims identify dangerous individuals. Furthermore, published literature indicates that people of the same race and age are more likely to be perpetrators and victims; this conclusion would have narrowed the list of perpetrators of persecution against university students (Ferreira, 2018). The arguments presented by the article do not stand up to a serious approach, especially in the attempt to identify the correlation between stalking and substance abuse. Relevant literature was not cited and the necessary research to establish credible correlations was not conducted. While research on the broader topic of “stalking victimization” was somewhat warranted, although very few statistics were cited, and the sample group, college students, was also interesting to examine. But substance abuse has proven very difficult to link to stalking victimization, whether it is a characteristic of the offender or a side effect of being a victim. Modern literature has identified the various impacts of stalking on victims, including emotional, financial and employment impacts. But no evidence of a direct or indirect relationship between stalking victimization and substance abuse has been discovered. The impacts of stalking victimization include emotional agony. Most victims feared for their lives, mainly uncertainty and fear of the unknown. In contrast, few victims are concerned about normalizing the situation (Cheyne, 2018). The work-related effects of stalking were more objective, as victims took time away from work to make arrangements such as changing phone numbers, obtaining restraining orders, etc. and therefore endured unnecessary stress. Likewise, the financial impact, in the form of legal fees, change of residence, and so on, was recorded. The financial cost ranged between 250 and $1000. Furthermore, income losses also occurred due to the displacement of working hours (Salat, 2019). The questions ofresearch are not very well formulated and are difficult to deduce. For example, at one point, indicating the purpose of this study to find the extent of stalking victimization among college graduates, researchers unsuccessfully attempted to get at alcohol and drug abuse. In some cases, a correlation appears to develop between physical violence and substance abuse. However, no question related to physically aggressive behavior was added in the questionnaire, further disturbing the unity and logical flow of the article. Method and design For data collection, a survey method was selected and a questionnaire was used to collect data in quantitative form by assigning to the recording the number of times a particular stalking event occurred (Scott, 2019 ). A score is calculated on the basis of these numbers, the higher the score the more victimized the individual is and for this reason the average of the sample was around 70. While to record physical violence a similar scale was used with variations in parameters , and the standard was around 68. The AUDIT (Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test) was used to measure alcohol consumption, which taught the frequency and intensity of alcohol consumption, where a higher score it meant consumption greater than alcohol. A similar test called the “Drug Use Disorder Identification Test” (DUDIT) was used. An advantage of this methodology was the quantitative data collection, which allowed the collection of data from a larger sample, in an objective manner. On the contrary, among the questions, few are related to gossip and rumors (Dairo, 2018). Furthermore, an unlimited definition of stalking was given. Therefore, leaving it up to the interpretation of the respondents. Additionally, gender representation was disproportionate for every male participant in the survey; four women participated. Similar was the case with race, where the vast majority of respondents were White Caucasian. As a result, this survey would fail to provide an accurate picture of the general population. One of the key flaws was in the sample selection. College students are more likely to have an understanding of alcohol and drug use than the general population. While a study by Matos indicated that college students consume 2.5 times more alcohol than average (2019). At the same time, another Stermac survey reported that more than 40% of college students met the criteria for alcohol and drug abuse (2018). Therefore, it was natural to have a higher level of drug and alcohol scores. Such factors could have been taken into account when comparing the alcohol and drug abuse scores of stalking victims and other college students. But, without such a comparison, it is extremely unreliable to look at college student alcohol and drug use and link it to stalking victimization. Another technique to mitigate this factor could have been to compare victims' alcohol and drug use before and during the victimization period. Therefore, the entire premise of this research could have been wrong. The emphasis on physical violence was beyond the scope of the research, especially when the physical violence was not the result of stalking. Physical abuse is a separate form of violence, while stalking is linked to a psychological disorder. Therefore, investigating physical violence, which did not arise from stalking, and its effects on drug abuse were outside the scope of this study. Therefore, it is very likely that this created discrepancies in the overall results (Villacampa, 2017). Results It is interesting to note thatall survey participants provided complete data and no missing parameters were found. Furthermore, the correlation between gender and stalking victimization was discovered. For males, a positive relationship was found between drug and alcohol use, while an inverse relationship was established between age and substance abuse. While for women a decidedly positive correlation has been established between physical aggression and drug abuse. Furthermore, another positive correlation was developed among women between stalking victimization and relationship period. At the same time, a negative correlation was found between relationship length and alcohol consumption. The other significant gender distinction was the increase in intensity and frequency of substance abuse between men and women, while the other parameters described no significant differences. The finding showed a clear relationship between physical aggression and the length of an intimate relationship. While, a similar trend was observed for stalking victimization, where alcohol abuse increased. In comparison, the last model described the gender variation created between stalking victimization and alcohol abuse. The analysis does not seem sufficient to justify the objectives of this research since many factors were excluded from the study, such as other emotional, financial impacts and the lifestyle of the interviewees (Ferreira, 2018). Furthermore, the sample size presented a clear picture of the population, while a comparative analysis would have been sufficient to calibrate the data and show an accurate description. The respondent was already consuming more than the appropriate amount of alcohol and drugs, which is likely to be the case among college students. Alcohol consumption would have provided incorrect data. Therefore, a comparative analysis is needed to ultimately justify the objectives of this research (Ferreira, 2018). At the same time, data related to physical violence were added and skewed the results in favor of achieving the goals. Contrary to the objectives of the study, stalking victimization, physical abuse, and aggression were analyzed to no avail. Mostly, outcome claims are justified with current data. Since the error lay in the sample selection and methodology, apart from that, ignoring these errors, the data confirms the hypothesis. With some hypotheses, these data can fully justify the result and confirm the interpretation of this study. First, assuming that participants consumed fewer substances than average (alcohol and drugs) prior to entering the relationship and subsequent stalking victimization. Secondly, considering physical violence, there has been an escalation of stalking. Therefore, its effects on substance abuse are relevant to the study. Third, assuming that the college student sample is the accurate representation of the general population in terms of alcohol consumption, lifestyle, socioeconomic background, gender and racial diversity. With this assumption, the data presents accurate results; therefore, it confirms the hypothesis and fulfills the purpose of this research. Discussion and Conclusion The theoretical and practical implication has not been comprehensively examined by the authors. However, brief directions for future research were provided regarding the investigation of the psychological aspects of stalking victimization and the coping mechanism of the role. Furthermore, an investigation was also conducted on the correlation between other health problems such as depression, anxiety and stalking victimization. But as for the practical implications, no examination has been carried out. The possible.