Stalking and the role of occupational therapy “you’re not living life to the full if you’re stalking”
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/JCP-07-2021-0028 |
| Published date | 16 August 2022 |
| Date | 16 August 2022 |
| Pages | 120-135 |
| Subject Matter | Health & social care,Criminology & forensic psychology,Criminal psychology,Sociology,Sociology of crime & law,Deviant behaviour,Public policy & environmental management,Policing,Criminal justice |
| Author | Rachael Wheatley,Sam Baker |
Stalking and the role of occupational
therapy “you’re not living life to
the full if you’re stalking”
Rachael Wheatley and Sam Baker
Abstract
Purpose –This discussion paper aims to highlight the role of occupational therapy (OT) in
understandingstalking and in interventions designed to assist the perpetratorto lead a more fulfilling life
throughhealthier occupations.
Design/methodology/approach –This study highlightsthe role of OT in understanding stalking and in
designing interventions to assist the perpetrator by extending discussions, drawing on the authors’
practitionerexperiences and upon recentstudy findings on what drives men who stalk.
Findings –Stalking is a problem behaviourthat is often effort-intense, all-consuming, emotionallydriven
and psychologicallydamaging for both victims and perpetrators.It consists of a patterned occupation of
time which is overarchingly dysfunctional, yet intrinsically purposeful. As humans, our actions and
occupationshave meaning to us. Stalking can be conceptualised as a meaningful yetself-defeating and
harmful pattern of occupations. This paper illustrates how stalking could be addressed through the
additionalcontribution of OT to multi-agencyapproaches.
Research limitations/implications –This paper extends the discussion by drawing on the authors’
clinicalpractitioner experiences and uponrecent study findings on what drivesmen who stalk.
Practical implications –This paper highlights the role of OT in understanding stalking and in
interventionsdesigned to assist the perpetratorto lead a more fulfilling life through healthieroccupations.
Originality/value –This marriageof knowledge from OT and stalking research is set out in support of the
applicationof OT within multi-agency approachesto working with people who stalk.
Keywords Occupation, Therapy, Occupational therapy, Stalking, Stalkers,Stalking intervention
Paper type Viewpoint
Introduction
Occupation can be defined as an activity one engages in. In the UK, the Royal College of
Occupational Therapists (RCOT) define occupation as a “term that refers to practical and
purposeful activities that allow people to live independently and have a sense of identity”
(RCOT, 2020 [1]). Similarly, the World Federation of Occupational Therapists (WFOT) define
occupation as “the everyday activities that people do as individuals, in families and with
communities to occupy time and bring meaning and purpose to life” (World Federation of
Occupational Therapy, 2022 [2]). The fundamental belief of occupational therapy (OT) is
that human engagement in occupation explicitly has personal meaning and purpose
(Hasselkus, 2011). It is through understanding the interconnectedness of well-being and
occupation that Occupational Therapists (OTs) can work holistically with individuals. This is
to increase their engagement in occupations of their interest, with a view to increasing their
overall well-being (Wilcock,2006).
Stalking is a problem behaviour that is commonly effort-intense, all-consuming, emotionally
driven, and psychologically damaging for victims and perpetrators (MacKenzie et al.,
Rachael Wheatley is based
at Department of
Psychology Services, Her
Majesty’s Prison and
Probation Service, London,
UK. Sam Baker is based at
Department of Social and
Life Sciences, Wrexham
Glyndwr University,
Wrexham, UK.
Received 9 July 2021
Revised 18 March 2022
Accepted 12 July 2022
PAGE 120 jJOURNAL OF CRIMINAL PSYCHOLOGY jVOL. 13 NO.2 2023, pp. 120-135, ©Emerald Publishing Limited, ISSN 2009-3829 DOI 10.1108/JCP-07-2021-0028
2009). It often consists of patterned occupations that are largely dysfunctional, yet
intrinsically purposeful. Understanding the drivers for stalking behaviour was the focus of a
mixed methods study undertaken by Wheatley (2019), later published (Wheatley et al.,
2020a). This small prison sample study highlighted rich and unanimous experiences of self-
defeating yet pervasive occupations that had a fundamental purpose of attaining or
restoring validation. For the men in the sample, stalking behaviours as “occupations” had
purpose, often linked to a common goal of being in a relationship or a reactive discharge of
negative emotion caused by rejection. Stalking was contextual to an event, an underlying
psychological vulnerability, and poor inter- and intra-personal skills. The purpose of this
paper is to understand these findings through an OT lens to demonstrate its potential value
in aiding people who stalk to desist.
The role of occupational therapy
Humans are active and social beings. We undertake daily occupations, often routinely. Our
lives consist of all the actions that have meaning to us, showing the importance we have
placed on them (Ozkan et al., 2018).Occupation is everything we do: our actions, the tasks,
and activities we undertake, and our thinking and being (Law et al.,2005). The WFOT
provided the following definitionin 2012 [3].
Occupational therapy is a client-centred health profession concerned with promoting health and
wellbeing through occupation. The primary goal of occupational therapy is to enable people to
participate in the activities of everyday life. Occupational therapists achieve this outcome by
working with people and communities to enhance their ability to engage in the occupationsthey
want to, need to, or are expected to do, or by modifying the occupation or the environment to
better support their occupational engagement.
The practice of OT not only emphasises the occupational nature of human beings but also
the importance of identity through occupations (Unruh, 2004). It promotes healthy,
productive and satisfying living through participation. From an OT perspective, human
occupation, or activity, has meaning and purpose at its core (Twinley and Addidle, 2012).
The RCOT explains [4] that OT traditionally provides practical support to enable people to
continue with activities that matter to them in the face of adversity (i.e. age, physical or
mental illness). Attempting to enable people to maintain as much independence and
autonomy in achieving life satisfaction through meaningful daily activityis sought.
OT reviews the types of activities people engage in and explores prioritised engagement in
certain occupations or activities, acknowledging how and why these may vary over time periods
and in differing conditions (Ozkan et al., 2018). OTs explore engagement in daily activities, the
barriers to meaningful or successful occupational engagement, and review future life aspirations
and values as well as previous life histories (Ozkan et al.,2018). Occupation, according to
Wilcock (2006), is a synthesis of doing (encompassing the things we do), being (our sense and
feeling about the things we do), becoming (our aspirations and values) and belonging (our
social identity). There are clear overlaps with the Good Lives Model (Ward et al., 2007),
developed by psychologists for encouraging rehabilitation with forensic clients, in terms of focus
and outcomes. However, the role of the OT is to collaboratively develop a person’s social ability
in a structured and sequential manner and applying it directly to daily living activities. In this way,
actual ability (as opposed to self-assessed) can be evaluated to set goals which provide “just
the right challenge”. Multi-professional collaboration is considered best practice, and the
specific added value of the OT is their role in taking individuals into the environments relevant to
their daily lives to develop specific skills required to achieve their goals in non-harmful ways.
The dark side of occupation
Crime statistics show that some of the activities we humans undertake, especially done
repeatedly, can cause harm to others (even kill them) and ourselves (Hocking, 2020).
VOL. 13 NO. 2 2023 jJOURNAL OF CRIMINAL PSYCHOLOGY jPAGE 121
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