Cyberstalking: Fear of phyisical confrontation and its effects on trauma

This paper aims to communicate the major fears of a diverse population that has experienced sustained online harassment, the fears that victims have reported and how these might relate to trauma related thoughts and beliefs. Initial results from an international study of cyberstalking are presented. The ECHO pilot project (Electronic Communication Harassment Observation) www.nss.org/ECHO 2010 was a six month project run in collaboration with The Network for Surviving Stalking (NSS). The project was designed with the aim of gaining a clearer view of the nature and impact of cyberstalking. The major fears of harassment victims are reported. Initial results indicate the presence of trauma in those reporting cyberstalking as well as evidence of changes in trauma related thoughts and beliefs (PCTI: Foa, et al. (1999) for those victims who either feared or experienced face to face harassment, when compared to those who did not.