TY - JOUR
T1 - Predictors of varying levels of risks posed by fixated individuals to British public figures
AU - Gill, Paul
AU - Corner, Emily
AU - Farnham, Frank
AU - Wilson, Simon
AU - Marchment, Zoe
AU - Taylor, Alice
AU - Taylor, Richard
AU - James, David
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 The Authors. Journal of Forensic Sciences published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of American Academy of Forensic Sciences.
PY - 2021/7
Y1 - 2021/7
N2 - Concerning approaches and communications to the Royal Family and other British public figures are relatively numerous. This paper examines over 2000 such cases logged over a three-year period in the United Kingdom. Using police and health data, the paper conducts a series of bivariate and multivariate analyses to demonstrate the predictors of what types of risk are posed by an individual case (e.g., communicate only, approach, security breach). The results showed that (a) the rates of serious mental disorders are higher among this sample than the general population base rate, (b) approachers were significantly more likely than communicators to suffer from serious mental disorders, (c) approachers were significantly more likely than communicators to have a history of substance use and abuse problems, (d) approachers were significantly more likely than communicators to have a history of violent behavior against property and persons, and (e) the motivations of approachers and communicators significantly differ. The paper concludes with a consideration of the implications for threat assessment and management.
AB - Concerning approaches and communications to the Royal Family and other British public figures are relatively numerous. This paper examines over 2000 such cases logged over a three-year period in the United Kingdom. Using police and health data, the paper conducts a series of bivariate and multivariate analyses to demonstrate the predictors of what types of risk are posed by an individual case (e.g., communicate only, approach, security breach). The results showed that (a) the rates of serious mental disorders are higher among this sample than the general population base rate, (b) approachers were significantly more likely than communicators to suffer from serious mental disorders, (c) approachers were significantly more likely than communicators to have a history of substance use and abuse problems, (d) approachers were significantly more likely than communicators to have a history of violent behavior against property and persons, and (e) the motivations of approachers and communicators significantly differ. The paper concludes with a consideration of the implications for threat assessment and management.
KW - approach behavior
KW - assessing risk level
KW - fixated individuals
KW - risk management
KW - threat assessment
KW - threats posed to public figures
KW - violence motivations
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85102837670&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1111/1556-4029.14708
DO - 10.1111/1556-4029.14708
M3 - Article
SN - 0022-1198
VL - 66
SP - 1364
EP - 1376
JO - Journal of Forensic Sciences
JF - Journal of Forensic Sciences
IS - 4
ER -