Thesis Title: Gender Differences in Experiencing and Witnessing Stalking in University Students
Author Name: Zarmina Riaz
Supervisor: Naumana Amjad
Year: 2017
Degree: BS
Department: Institute of Applied Psychology
University: Punjab University, Lahore, Pakistan
Corresponding Address: Department of Applied Psychology, University of the Punjab, Lahore, Pakistan. Email: chairperson@appsy.pu.edu.pk, Phone: 92-42-9231245
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to investigate gender differences in experiencing and witnessing stalking in university students. Stalking is unnecessary or obsessive following by an individual or a group towards another person. Stalking behaviors are associated to harassment and intimidation and may contain following the victim in person or monitoring them (Spitzberg, 2002). Gender differences were going to be investigated here in the sense that which gender was going to experience and witness stalking more? Whether gender differences did exist or didn’t? Gender refers to the roles and responsibilities of men and women that are created in our families, our societies and our cultures (March & Smyth, 1999). Past investigators suggested that socio demographic variables were responsible for violent behavior in dating relationships (Martins, Gouveia, Chaves, Lourenço, Marques & Santos, 2014). It was also suggested that the duration of the stalking was greatly associated with the stalker’s gender and stalker’s relationship with the victim. Half of the stalking victims reported aggressive and threatening behaviors and violent stalking methods from the ex-partners (Bjorklund, Hakkanen, Sheridan, & Roberts, 2010). It was hypothesized that girls experienced and witnessed more stalking than boys. It was also hypothesized that demographic variables such as age, gender and area of residence were likely to predict stalking’s experience and witness in university students. The sample was collected through convenient sampling technique and consisted of 136 university students with the age range of 18 to 26 years. For assessment, Obsessive Relational Intrusion (ORI) Scale (Spitzberg & Cupach, 2007) was used. Descriptive statistics were applied to generate the mean and standard deviation while Independent sample t-test was used to find out which gender experience or witness more stalking. Moreover, Regression analysis was applied to see whether the demographic variables predict stalking experience and witness of stalking or not. This research provides information to the authorities that what policies they should made for the safe surroundings for men and women.
Keywords:
Stalking, experience, witness
