Assessing the link between stalking and domestic violence Kevin S. Douglas a,1 , Donald G. Dutton b, * a Department of Psychology and Mental Health, Law, and Policy Institute, Simon Fraser University, 8888 University Drive, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada V5A 1S6 b Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia, 2136 West Mall, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada V6T IZ4 Received 20 September 1999; received in revised form 2 December 1999; accepted 28 January 2000 Abstract Stalking may be defined as repeated following, communicating, and contacting a person in a threatening manner that causes the person to fear, on a reasonable basis, for his or her safety. Stalking is a recent legal construct, and social scientific research on stalking is in an early stage. Given that the most common victim of stalking is an ex-intimate partner, there may be an association between stalking and domestic violence. This paper evaluates this potential link. Specifically, the literature on stalking is reviewed by means of comparing it to existing literature on typologies of domestically violent persons. It is proposed that most stalkers who target ex-intimate partners are character- ologically similar to a type of batterer labeled ‘‘borderline/cyclical.’’ Both domestic stalkers and borderline/cyclical batterers possess traits of Cluster B personality disorders. These traits include emotional volatility, attachment dysfunction, primitive defenses, weak ego strength, jealousy, anger, substance abuse, and early childhood trauma. Further, both groups have been observed to react with rage to perceived or actual rejection or abandonment. It is suggested that applying what is known about borderline/cyclical batterers to stalkers may aid in the investigation of this phenomenon. Implications for research are discussed. D 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved. Keywords: Link; Stalking; Domestic violence As Meloy (1998) states, ‘‘stalking is an old behavior, but a new crime’’ (p. xix). This statement indicates that while stalking has likely always been a part of human behavior, it is * Corresponding author. Tel.: +1-604-822-2755; fax: +1-604-822-6923. E-mail address: kdouglas@arts.sfu.ca (K.S. Douglas). 1 Tel.: +1-604-291-5945. 1359-1789/01/$ – see front matter D 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved. PII:S1359-1789(00)00018-5 Aggression and Violent Behavior 6 (2001) 519–546