title: The Psychology of Stalking: Clinical and Forensic Perspectives
author:  J. Reid Meloy 
description: "J. Reid Meloy and his colleagues have blended clinical insight, scientific rigor, and legal precision to produce the one indispensable book on stalking. Encyclopedic in coverage and gracefully written, this work will have enormous influence on practice, policy, and research. With the publication of <i>The Psychology of Stalking: Clinical and Forensic Perspectives</i>, the study of stalking has come of age." --<b>JOHN MONAHAN, Ph.D., Professor of Law, University of Virginia<br /></b><br />"<i>The Psychology of Stalking: Clinical and Forensic Perspectives</i> is a comprehensive, up-to-date scholarly review that included everything from Shakespeare's stalking sonnets to cyberstalking. It provides a wealth of useful information. The book is must reading for law enforcement and mental health professionals who deal with stalkers."<br />--<b>PHILLIP J. RESNICK, M.D.</b><br /><br />"This book is necessary reading for anyone who is currently working within any of the professional fields in which stalking is an issue. The book not only brings readers up to date with the research findings, but it also encourages them to reassess myths that have been perpetuated by media, literary works, and pop psychology. Most significant, this edited volume points to important and innovative areas of investigation and research that must be explored as we approach the 21st century." --<b>ANTHONY J. PINIZZOTTO, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Behavioral Sciences Unit<br /></b><br />"A number of books on stalking have been published by journalists and victims of stalkers, but until the release of this volume no scholarly review of the topic was available. The editor, J. Reid Meloy, was one of the first clinicians to write about stalkers and his work has been central to the evolution of serious inquiry into stalking...This is the first book aimed primarily at clinicians in a rapidly expanding area of public and clinical interest. It won't be the last but it sets a high standard for those that will follow." --<b><i>Medical Journal of Australia</i>, Vol. 171, September 1999</b><br /><br />"<i>The Psychology of Stalking</i> is an outstanding collection of writings on a subject for which there is a very sparse literature... the information here is vital to clinicians who treat offenders and victims as well as potentially extremely helpful to law enforcement professionals. <i>The Psychology of Stalking</i> is a must for all clinicians and law enforcement personnel who are likely to come into contact with this very troublesome phenomenon: the person who is relentless in seeking a relationship with another individual who wants nothing more than to be left alone." --<b><i>THE JOURNAL OF PSYCHIATRY AND LAW</i></b>
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  Chapter 1 - Coincidence
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  If a coincidence occurs repeatedly, does it become inevitable?
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  For instance, pretend you're walking in the city and happen to run into
  someone you know. You haven't arranged to meet beforehand, you don’t share a
  common destination, nor does he know where you are headed.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  In that case, you'd probably mark it down as a coincidence. The second time
  you run into him, you may find it a funny coincidence; the third time, well,
  perhaps you'd be surprised by that remarkable string of coincidences.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  However, if the number of encounters continues to grow, you might come to
  think that this person is stalking you.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  But running into someone who neither shares nor knows of your destination
  without any prior arrangement is, and will be, pure coincidence - no matter
  how many times you come into contact.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  However, if you run into someone who knows where you’re going and is actively
  pursuing you, then that