What do we know about stalking?

• Autor(a) principal: Canto, Gustavo Cambraia do
• Data de Publicação: 2021
• Outros Autores: Valença, Alexandre Martins, Silva, Antonio Geraldo da, Telles, Bibiana de Borba, Barros, Alcina Juliana Soares, Telles, Lisieux Elaine de Borba
• Tipo de documento: Artigo
• Idioma: eng; por; spa
• Título da fonte: Debates em Psiquiatria (Online)
• Texto Completo: https://revistardp.org.br/revista/article/view/274
• topic: Psiquiatria Forense; Código Penal; Perseguição; Transtornos Mentais; Desordem Mental; Forensic Psychiatry; Penal Code; Stalking; Mental Disorders; Psiquiatría forense; Código Penal; Acecho; Desordenes mentales

The term stalking comes from the English language and should be understood as a form of aggression that causes the victim the feeling of being persecuted. The prevalence of victimization by this phenomenon in the community is approximately 11%. Its occurrence is associated with a high potential for impairment of quality of life, psychological and/or physical damage, which may even reach the risk of life and increase the chance of the victim developing mental disorders. Some aggressors meet criteria for psychiatric diagnoses such as personality disorder, bipolar disorder, depression and psychotic disorder, needing attention and adequate psychiatric treatment. Psychiatrists have been involved in this phenomenon in different ways, such as: through the assessment and treatment of patients who are victims of stalking, through the treatment of aggressors or as victims of stalking, to carry out criminal liability assessments and risk assessment of the aggressors, act in the judicial demands of victims, as well as in the assessment of the need for breach of professional secrecy. This publication aims to shed light on this phenomenon, so that it is better identified, understood and addressed, and that in the near future, we can make use of effective prevention tools.