University of Worcester, St Johns, UK.
J Interpers Violence. 2021 Jun;36(11-12):NP5965-NP5992. doi: 10.1177/0886260518811423. Epub 2018 Nov 15.
To date, there have been few studies with victims of stalking in the United Kingdom, and this is the first to have been conducted following the clarification of stalking as a criminal offense in 2012. In 2016, Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary Fire and Rescue Services (HMICFRS) and Her Majesty's Crown Prosecution Inspectorate (HMCPSI) announced the first ever inspection into harassment and stalking in England and Wales. This article presents research commissioned by HMICFRS as part of the inspection. In particular, we explore how victims described the response of the police and situate this within the context of changing legislation and previous research in the field. In total, 35 people shared their experiences of reporting harassment and stalking, 14 people completed an online survey, and 21 participants were interviewed. Responses were analyzed thematically and a series of themes were identified. The analysis suggests that despite the clarification of stalking as a criminal office in 2012, the majority of participants described poor responses from the police-with many describing police inaction, or inappropriate action-in addition to feeling blamed and not being taken seriously. The article considers possible explanations for these issues and concludes by calling for harassment and stalking legislation in England and Wales to be clarified, and for police training to shift the focus of the investigation from the behavior of the offender, to the emotional impact on the victim.
迄今为止，英国针对跟踪骚扰受害者的研究寥寥无几，这是 2012 年明确将跟踪骚扰行为定为刑事犯罪以来进行的首次此类研究。2016 年，英国警察和消防局监察长（HMICFRS）和英国皇家检察署监察长（HMCPSI）宣布对英格兰和威尔士的骚扰和跟踪骚扰行为进行首次检查。本文介绍了 HMICFRS 委托进行的研究，作为检查的一部分。特别是，我们探讨了受害者如何描述警方的反应，并将其置于不断变化的立法和该领域以前的研究背景下。总共有 35 人分享了他们举报骚扰和跟踪骚扰的经历，14 人完成了在线调查，21 名参与者接受了采访。对回复进行了主题分析，并确定了一系列主题。分析表明，尽管 2012 年明确将跟踪骚扰行为定为刑事犯罪，但大多数参与者描述了警方的反应不佳——许多人描述警方不作为或采取不当行动——此外，他们感到被指责，不被认真对待。本文考虑了这些问题的可能解释，并呼吁澄清英格兰和威尔士的骚扰和跟踪骚扰立法，将警方调查的重点从犯罪者的行为转移到对受害者的情感影响上。
