Obsession in Horror: The Female Stalker
When we think of stalkers, the typical image is a male hooded figure lurking in the dark. We think of fictional characters like Michael Myers in Halloween or real life creepers such as John Hinckley Jr., who attempted to assassinate President Ronald Reagan to gain the attention of actress Jodie Foster. Believe it or not, though, it’s not just the males that can “go a little mad sometimes.” Stalking by women is not that uncommon. Community-based studies of stalking victimization indicate that women are identified as perpetrators in 12%–13% of cases. In a study by J. Reid Meloy and Cynthia Boyd for the Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law (2003), 82 female stalkers from the United States, Canada, and Australia were reviewed. Demographically, female stalkers were predominantly single, heterosexual, educated individuals in their mid-30s who had pursued their victims for more than a year. Stalking victims were most likely to be slightly older male acquaintances. If the victim had prior sexual relations with the female stalker, the risk of being violent toward the male victim exceeded 50 percent. While male stalkers often pursue their victims to restore intimacy, these female stalkers often pursue their victims to establish intimacy. Meloy and Boyd were able to further classify female stalkers into four distinct groups (there was a fifth group, The Predatory Stalker, but it appeared to be exclusively male): The Rejected Stalker — stalking follows the end of a relationship The Intimacy Seeking Stalker — stalking based on a desire for intimacy The Incompetent Stalker — stalking with lack of social skills; stalker feels entitled to a relationship The Resentful Stalker — stalking meant to frighten victims Obsession plays a large part in horror, and some of the scariest stalkers in the history of the genre are female. All four of these “stalker groups” have been represented in horror literature and film. Let’s take a deeper look.
When we think of stalkers, the typical image is a male hooded figure lurking in the dark. We think of fictional characters like Michael Myers in Halloween or real life creepers such as John Hinckley Jr., who attempted to assassinate President Ronald Reagan to gain the attention of actress Jodie Foster. Believe it or not, though, it’s not just the males that can “go a little mad sometimes.” Stalking by women is not that uncommon. Community-based studies of stalking victimization indicate that women are identified as perpetrators in 12%–13% of cases. In a study by J. Reid Meloy and Cynthia Boyd for the Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law (2003), 82 female stalkers from the United States, Canada, and Australia were reviewed. Demographically, female stalkers were predominantly single, heterosexual, educated individuals in their mid-30s who had pursued their victims for more than a year. Stalking victims were most likely to be slightly older male acquaintances. If the victim had prior sexual relations with the female stalker, the risk of being violent toward the male victim exceeded 50 percent. While male stalkers often pursue their victims to restore intimacy, these female stalkers often pursue their victims to establish intimacy. Meloy and Boyd were able to further classify female stalkers into four distinct groups (there was a fifth group, The Predatory Stalker, but it appeared to be exclusively male): The Rejected Stalker — stalking follows the end of a relationship The Intimacy Seeking Stalker — stalking based on a desire for intimacy The Incompetent Stalker — stalking with lack of social skills; stalker feels entitled to a relationship The Resentful Stalker — stalking meant to frighten victims Obsession plays a large part in horror, and some of the scariest stalkers in the history of the genre are female. All four of these “stalker groups” have been represented in horror literature and film. Let’s take a deeper look.