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ORIGINAL PAPER
Understanding Stalking Behaviors by Individuals with Autism
Spectrum Disorders and Recommended Prevention Strategies
for School Settings
Michal Post •Linda Haymes •Keith Storey •
Tamara Loughrey •Camille Campbell
!Springer Science+Business Media New York 2012
Abstract Stalking behavior among some students with
Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASDs) is of concern both for
the individual being stalked as well as the student with
ASDs. This manuscript reviews effective interventions
based upon functional assessment and appropriate positive
behavior supports. Specific interventions for addressing
staking behavior by students with ASDs are analyzed and
evaluated with suggestions for best practice for instruc-
tional procedures. Interventions covered are social skills
groups, video modeling, self-management, video feedback,
rule governed behavior, scripts, visual supports, counsel-
ing, psychopharmacology and reducing the amount of
isolating interests and activities while increasing more
opportunities for integration. Recommendations for future
research are discussed.
Keywords Autism !Stalking !Social skills !School
setting
Certain characteristics associated with Individuals with
Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) may put these individ-
uals at risk for engaging in stalking behavior. Character-
istics such as difficulty in correctly interpreting
interpersonal cues (signaling their contact with a person as
unwanted), a perseverative focus on a desired person, and a
tendency to ignore social or legal consequences puts them
at risk to engage in stalking behavior (Haskins and Silva
2006).
What is Stalking?
Stalking is illegal in all 50 United States (California was
the first state to make stalking illegal in 1990) but each
state defines stalking differently (Snow 1998). Stalking is
defined as a continuum of behavior that can range from
harassment to threatening behavior to assault and homicide
(Snow 1998). It is often a fine line between acceptable and
unacceptable behavior (e.g., sending flowers to someone at
work may be interpreted differently by the receiver
depending upon their own intentions and their assessment
of the context). There are three main elements of a stalking
crime (Proctor 2003). These are (1) harassment involving
repetitive, annoying and disturbing behavior directed
towards a person that has no positive or legitimate reason
other than to harm the person, (2) a credible threat toward a
person that causes the person to become fearful of their
safety or causes emotional distress, and (3) a course of
conduct involving a series of acts over time towards a
person that causes emotional stress and/or concern with
safety.
Factors that Play a Role in Stalking Behavior
Understanding the implications of stalking behavior by
individuals with ASD is important as individuals with ASD
are increasingly being integrated into inclusive settings and
M. Post (&)!L. Haymes !K. Storey
Graduate School of Education, Touro University,
1310 Club Drive, Vallejo, CA 94592, USA
e-mail: michal.post@tu.edu
T. Loughrey
Loughrey & Associates, 21 – C Orinda Way #307, Orinda,
CA 94563, USA
C. Campbell
1456 Charmian Court, Benicia, CA 94510, USA
123
J Autism Dev Disord
DOI 10.1007/s10803-012-1712-8
may unintentionally engage in stalking behaviors without
realizing their behaviors may be interpreted by others as
stalking. Along with having difficulty reading social cues,
individuals with ASD may have trouble understanding the
viewpoint of others. Perspective taking is referred to as
Theory of Mind (TOM) (Attwood 2007). The individual
with ASD may engage in inappropriate romantic and/or
sexual behavior and have criminal charges of stalking
brought against them (Attwood 2007; Mullen et al. 2000)
due to the unintentional misreading of the recipients cues
and deficits in TOM. Individual with ASD can also engage
in perseverative behaviors as displayed by unusual
attachments to objects or people. These behaviors may be
interpreted by the recipient as stalking (Hagland and Webb
2009; Thompson 2007). Though the prevalence of stalking
behaviors among individuals with ASD is not known, it
could be increasing as individuals with ASD are increas-
ingly served in inclusive school and work settings. The
purpose of this article is to provide an overview of stalking
behavior in school settings for students with ASD and to
suggest possible intervention strategies.
Stalking Behavior in School Settings
Teaching appropriate social and communication skills to
students with ASD needs to be an integral part of
instruction in the school setting. Specific deficits in these
two areas can lead to misunderstood motives for inappro-
priate social interaction by individuals with ASD. In a
situation where someone is persistently being followed,
after telling the student with ASD to stop, the result can be
the perception of ‘‘being stalked’’ by the person followed.
Stokes et al. (2007) examined the nature and predictors
of social and romantic functioning in adolescents and
adults with ASD. Several communication and social skill
deficits were identified as barriers to successful romantic
functioning placing individuals with ASD at risk for
inappropriate courtship behaviors. These deficits included:
difficulty making small talk, not understanding the concept
of a girlfriend or boyfriend, lack of empathy, lack of
understanding in social contexts, and/or difficulty reading
social cues. It was also reported that parents of individuals
with ASD felt their children’s romantic/sexual behaviors
were misunderstood by others.
It is important for teachers to become aware of the social
interaction behaviors that can be misunderstood and edu-
cate others about the difficulty the student with ASD is
facing. This is important as a student might become
involved in a school disciplinary action due to being
accused of ‘‘stalking’’ by another student or staff member.
For example, Stokes et al. (2007) found that individuals
with ASD pursued a romantic interest longer than typical
when there was no response or a negative reaction from the
other person. Parents reported that it was difficult for their
child with ASD to know when it was appropriate to stop
contact. The child’s lack of understanding as to why there
was no reciprocity along with their feeling that they were
doing nothing wrong maintained the unwanted pursuit.
Additionally, Stokes and Kaur (2005) found that parents of
children with high-functioning autism or Asperger syn-
drome, aged 10–15 years old, indicated that school sex
education programs should focus on social interaction
skills for adolescents.
Schools need to provide sex education programs for
individuals with ASD that are designed to teach the specific
social skills needed for developing successful relationships.
Sex education for adolescents with high-functioning autism
needs to include understanding privacy and sexual behav-
iors. Knowing the rules governing privacy; what is a pri-
vate act (masturbating, disrobing) and what is considered a
private place, is relevant for developing acceptable social
skills and should be included in a school’s sex education
program. Non-disabled peers also need to be part of sex
education instruction. A significant predictor of successful
romantic interaction in the Stokes et al. (2007) study was
the extent to which social skills were learned from non-
disabled peers. This finding indicates how important it is
for schools to provide inclusive education with role mod-
eling from non-disabled peers in order for appropriate
social skills to develop in this area.
Intervention Process in Schools
Interventions for addressing stalking by students with ASD
are managed most effectively in school settings by a
multidisciplinary approach that focuses on the stalker’s
social system (Knoll 2007). There may be a need to involve
such agencies as law enforcement, criminal justice, mental
health, campus security, victim advocates, teachers,
behavior specialists, and case workers. Within school
programs, these agencies can coordinate their services
simultaneously with the educational team to provide
effective interventions.
Assessment of the stalking behavior is the first step in
the intervention process. This involves the completion of a
functional behavioral assessment (FBA) to determine the
motivation of the stalking behavior. An FBA is a system-
atic process for gaining an understanding as to why the
stalking behavior is occurring (Lennox and Miltenberger
1989; O’Neill et al. 1997). This understanding of the
function of the stalking behavior is of critical importance
for the development of an appropriate intervention. The
two functions of behavior are to gain or avoid (O’Neill
et al. 1997). With stalking behavior it would be a logical
J Autism Dev Disord
123
assumption that the function of the behavior is to obtain a
romantic relationship, though this needs to be assessed for
each individual. Following an FBA, interventions are
chosen and embedded in a positive behavior intervention
plan (BIP). This BIP is developed to address the function or
motivation of the stalking behavior and to teach appropri-
ate replacement skills for the stalking behavior.
Interventions may include social skill instruction in the
areas of perspective taking, understanding pragmatic lan-
guage, and using appropriate conversation skills. Stokes
et al. (2007) determined that people with Asperger’s and
High Functioning Autism differ in their social functioning
from their typical peers in their lack of foundational social
skills, which are needed later for developing more com-
plex, intimate, and positive romantic relationships. Finally,
students with ASD often engage in persistent preoccupa-
tion with objects or concepts and can have a restricted
interest with an intensity or focus that makes it ‘‘abnormal’’
(DSM IV 1994). The stalking of a person, or persons, can
be a manifestation of this preoccupation. For people with
ASD these preoccupations can be addressed through cog-
nitive behavior therapy with counseling and/or pharmaco-
therapy (Smith Myles and Simpson 2002).
Conducting the Functional Behavioral Assessment
Functional behavioral assessments (FBA) can be com-
pleted through indirect methods, direct observation, or
functional analysis (Neef and Peterson 2007). The easiest
way to gain the information is through structured inter-
views with the student, teachers, support staff, campus
security, parents, administration, counselors, and other
relevant persons. A second method for gathering more
information about the behavior, antecedents, skill deficits,
and consequences is through direct observation in the
natural setting. This functional assessment entails direct
observation using a chart to track antecedents, behaviors,
and consequences across the school day (O’Neill et al.
1997). Not only will this provide information as to triggers
for the target behavior (e.g., where interactions occur) but
this will also shed light on the student’s skill needs (e.g.,
learning awareness of social rules).
Understanding the Function of Stalking Behaviors
Spitzberg and Cupach (2007) conducted a meta-analysis of
175 studies on stalking. Part of this meta-analysis was an
analysis of motives. Numerous motives were cited in the
study including intimacy, infatuation, jealousy, obsession,
and relationship development. Meloy and Gothard (1995)
looked at demographic and clinical comparisons between
obsessional followers and offenders with mental disorders
(this study was conducted prior to the release of DSM IV,
which was the first DSM to include a diagnosis of Asper-
ger’s syndrome). They did find that 12 % of the offenders
with ‘‘mental disorders’’ were evaluated as having social
incompetence. Mullen et al. (1999), identified five types of
stalkers including the ‘‘incompetent stalker.’’ These
incompetent stalkers display loneliness, a lack of social
competence, as well as obsessional characteristics, similar
to people with Asperger’s Syndrome. Obsessional charac-
teristics as described in the literature are similar to the
perseverations and preoccupations of people with ASD.
Thus, it is likely the function of stalking would include
gaining access to a person, seeking the attention or a
relationship with the person and concomitant lack of social
competency. The student may want a relationship with an
identified person but lack the skills to go about forming the
relationship appropriately or recognizing when the person
does not want a relationship with the student. Another cited
motivation is revenge for rejection of the relationship. The
stalker may still be seeking that person’s attention with
revenge. Students with Asperger’s are often rejected for
friendship and romantic relationships due to their lack of
social awareness. Due to their lack of perspective taking,
students with ASD fail to perceive that others are rejecting
them romantically and thus continue to pursue a relation-
ship when it is inappropriate to do so.
Educational Component: Addressing Skill Needs
Once the function of the stalking behavior and skill needs
are determined, the intervention plan needs to be devel-
oped. If seeking a relationship is the function, then coun-
selors, psychologists, behaviorists, speech therapists and
others need to work with the student to develop the skills
for seeking a relationship appropriately. If the function is
revenge for rejection, then the same personnel would need
to work with the student on coping skills for the rejection
and for disengaging the relationship. The behavior inter-
vention plan needs to include strategies for teaching the
needed skills based upon the determined function. Some of
the skills that may need to be taught include basic con-
versational exchanges (Attwood, 2000), reading body lan-
guage and social cues (Klin et al. 2000), simultaneous
recognition of facial, body and situational cues (Konig and
McGill-Evans 2001), and perspective taking (Baron-Cohen
et al. 1985; LeBlanc et al. 2003).
As mentioned earlier, Stokes et al. (2007) found that
people with ASD pursued a person for a relationship longer
and more persistently even when they received no response
or a negative response. This finding indicates the need for
improving socialization skills by teaching students the
skills that will enable them to appropriately pursue a
friendship, participate in a friendship and develop an inti-
mate relationship. Many people with ASD fail to
J Autism Dev Disord
123
understand another’s nonverbal communication, or their
thoughts and feelings, or understand social reciprocity.
Thus, the skills needed to be taught may include:
1. Perception of other’s feelings.
2. Recognizing both wanted and unwanted behavior.
3. Acceptance of rejection.
4. Development of alternative behaviors after rejection.
5. Development of vocabulary and meaning of language
associated with relationships and intimacy.
6. Distinguishing between acquaintances and friends.
7. Discerning appropriate targets for relationships.
8. Understanding social rules and norms for approaching
an individual with romantic intentions.
9. Understanding laws governing stalking behavior.
Stokes et al. (2007) investigated which learning sources
individuals with ASD used to acquire social skills and how
these sources influenced their competence. Typical teen-
agers and young adults acquired more social knowledge
and skills from peers and friends than did individuals with
ASD. Social learning from peers and friends was predictive
of social functioning. Often people with ASD learn social
skills through family and observation but these sources
were shown to have a negative impact upon romantic
functioning. Considering these findings, it is important to
include in school curriculum the strategies to teach both
social skills and skills for relationship building, and include
the use of non-disabled peers with the interventions.
Castorina and Negri (2011) investigated the social skill
development and generalization of skills with 21 boys with
Asperger’s syndrome with their siblings as participants in
the social skills group. The individuals with Asperger
failed to demonstrate generalization of the skills regardless
of their sibling’s participation. This supports previous
research on the importance of using same age non-disabled
peers, rather than family members, for modeling and
teaching appropriate social skills.
Social Skill Groups
Social skill groups often are directed by counselors, school
psychologists, behaviorists, or speech and language
pathologists (SLP) in schools. If students with ASD are
going to acquire competence in relationship building they
need the involvement of same age non-disabled peers in the
instruction and group process. There are many commer-
cially available curriculums available for various age
groups such as Think Social: A social thinking curriculum
for school-age students (Winner 2005) which is used for
elementary school students and The Access program:
Adolescent curriculum for communication and effective
social skills (Walker et al. 1988) for secondary school
students, however, neither one of these curriculums
directly address romantic and intimate relationships. A 5 is
against the law! Social boundaries: Straight up! (Dunn
Buron 2007) is a curriculum developed specifically related
to stalking. The book has practical lessons that can be used
within counseling sessions or social skills groups. This
book addresses personal boundaries, relationships, and
shows how behavior shifts from ‘‘odd’’ to illegal. The
curriculum is geared toward adolescents and young adults.
When using any of these curriculums, social skills groups
can be effective if typical peers are incorporated into the
group and skills are targeted for generalization outside of
instructional settings (across settings, times, behaviors, and
individuals). For successful generalization, the same skills
taught within the group will need to be prompted and
supported by typical peers in the school and community.
The only way a social skills curriculum or group is effec-
tive and valid is if the skills are used in the criterion
environment (Gresham et al. 2006).
In order to increase the effectiveness of social skills
instruction, there needs to be adherence to three compo-
nents in planning for generalization: before, during, and
following instruction. It is important to select appropriate
peers, such as, competent peers that participate in the stu-
dent’s daily life. Instruction should take place in multiple,
natural settings, such as, recess for young children or
during lunch or passing time for secondary students.
Instruction should be explicit and direct with opportunities
to practice, as seen in the study by Leaf et al. (2010). These
researchers conducted a study to increase social skills in
young children with autism when participating in play
groups. They used a procedure that involved describing the
behavior, providing a rational for the behavior (including
cues when to use the behavior), dividing the skill into
smaller steps, demonstrating the behavior having the stu-
dent role play the behavior, and then providing the children
with feedback. In this study, all of the five young children
with ASD acquired the skills and generalized the skills
from the social skill’s group to the natural settings at
school.
Finally, to maintain the social skills developed in group
instruction, the students may continue to need cueing,
corrective feedback, and importantly, reinforcement for the
appropriate behaviors (keeping in mind the function of the
behavior may be to access attention from certain persons).
With the development of appropriate social behavior, the
student is thus more likely to receive the natural rein-
forcement of positive social interactions which will main-
tain the behavior in the criterion environment.
Video Modeling
Video modeling is a technique in which a model demon-
strates a desired behavior for a student with ASD to imitate
J Autism Dev Disord
123
or to analyze inappropriate behaviors. Video modeling has
been effective in teaching conversation skills (Charlop and
Milstein 1989), play-related comments (Taylor et al. 1999)
and social initiations (Haymes 1995; Nikopoulos and
Keenan 2007). For example, Charlop-Christy et al. (2010)
demonstrated that video modeling resulted in appropriate
verbal comments, intonation, gestures, and facial expres-
sions during social interactions by students with ASD.
Video modeling can be effective for the more subtle social
behaviors that students with ASD often fail to understand
and demonstrate. In addition to the subtle skills and basic
social conversational skills, video modeling has been
effective for acquisition of perspective taking (Charlop-
Christy and Daneshvar 2003; LeBlanc et al. 2003). Per-
spective taking is the recognition that other people may
hold different viewpoints, which may be false, but these
viewpoints will guide future decisions. In the study by
LeBlanc et al. (2003), the three students with ASD
acquired the perspective taking skills but demonstrated
limited generalization. There are no published studies on
video modeling specifically related to the reduction of
stalking behavior; however, video modeling has been used
for the development of replacement social behaviors nec-
essary for the prevention of stalking (e.g., perspective
taking, subtle social cues). Video modeling may be effec-
tive for teaching skills, such as, recognizing wanted and
unwanted behavior and appropriate responses following
rejection.
Self-Management Strategies
Self-management has been well documented as effective
in improving social skills and decreasing disruptive
behavior in students with ASD (Koegel and Koegel 1990;
Koegel et al. 1992). Self-management is effective for
increasing the generalization of learned skills. This pro-
cedure can require the student to monitor their behavior
following a checklist or set of rules, self-reinforce their
behavior, and record their own behavior. Reinforcement
may initially be provided by adults for accurate self-
monitoring and for correct performance of the target
behavior. Self-management is considered a pivotal skill in
that it can affect wide-reaching changes across environ-
ments and behaviors (Koegel et al. 1999). Importantly, it
shifts responsibility from adults to the student to direct
and manage their own behavior. Self-management is often
used to track and reinforce the performance of the newly
learned skill. Students with ASD may use this system, for
example, to monitor their behavior when approaching a
classmate and track if they stop the behavior following
negative feedback, or if they continue the behavior fol-
lowing positive feedback. Self-management techniques
can be used to teach the necessary skills for both
prevention and replacement of stalking behaviors.
Wehmeyer et al. (2003) used a self-management package
for an adolescent with developmental disabilities to
decrease inappropriate touching and hugging. Combining
self-monitoring, self-evaluation and self-reinforcement led
to a dramatic decrease and maintenance at close to zero
occurrences of the inappropriate behavior. Not many self-
management studies have addressed stalking specifically
but in a review of self-management Southall and Gast
(2011) determined that 50 % of the published self-man-
agement studies with autism were related to the devel-
opment of social skills.
Self-Management Combined with Video Feedback
Video feedback (VFB) differs from video modeling in that
the student and an instructor review actual footage of the
student’s behavior. The student thus learns to assess his or
her own behavior and to discriminate between appropriate
and inappropriate responding (Maione and Mirenda 2006).
For example, Deitchman et al. (2010) incorporated video
feedback into self-management training to promote gen-
eralization of social initiations by students with ASD. The
students observed video samples of themselves initiating
with peers at recess and also with samples failing to initiate
with peers. They learned to discriminate between ‘‘good
talking’’ and ‘‘not good talking.’’ The students developed
self-monitoring skills and increased peer initiations.
O’Reilly et al. (2005) determined that immediate VFB
combined with a self-management system was effective in
reducing aggressive behaviors and increasing pro-social
behaviors during recess. Myles and Simpson (2001)
describe a scenario of an adolescent with ASD who
engaged in stalking and the school addressed the behavior
with VFB and cognitive behavior management. He showed
serial interest in a variety of female peers at school, fol-
lowing them and sitting with them, and he did not change
his behavior despite their negative feedback. The inter-
vention used VFB of his stalking behavior to help him
recognize what was inappropriate about his behavior. In
addition, he used a self-monitoring system for self-
recording contact with peers and delivering self-
reinforcement. For self-reinforcement he chose spending
time with peers (sitting with them at lunch and walking to
class together). The combination of VFB and self-rein-
forcement with self-monitoring was effective at eliminat-
ing the stalking behavior.
Scripts, Social Stories and Visual Supports
Using scripts for guiding conversations have been effec-
tive, especially when combined with social stories
and visual supports for teaching social language skills
J Autism Dev Disord
123
(Krantz and McClannahan 1998). Scripts are written step-
by-step comments or requests that are composed of initi-
ating statements, maintenance statements and ending
statements for conversational exchanges. Krantz and
McClannahan (1993) demonstrated that students with ASD
could use the written scripts as cues to engage in appro-
priate initiations and responses. A Social Story
TM
describes
a situation, skill, or concept in terms of relevant social
cues, perspectives, and common responses in a specifically
defined style and format. Social Stories
TM
have been
demonstrated as effective at reducing behavioral difficul-
ties but have not been shown to be as effective at devel-
oping social skills, according to a recent meta-analysis
(Sansosti et al. 2004). Whereas, social stories have not been
used to treat stalking related behaviors they can be effec-
tive for reducing inappropriate behaviors such as following
peers, staring at people, and using inappropriately romantic
language. Many interventions include a package or com-
bination of these treatments utilizing self-management or
reinforcement. For example, Thiemann and Goldstein
(2001) combined social, pictorial, written text cues and
video feedback to increase attention gaining skills, initia-
tions, comments, and requests in young children with ASD.
These visual systems can be used for behavioral reductions
as well as the development of alternative appropriate social
behaviors.
Rule Governed Behavior
One final method is teaching the student to use rule-gov-
erned behavior (RGB). A rule is a verbal description of a
contingency, the relationship among occasion, behavior,
and consequences (Hayes 2004). For example, when
addressing stalking behaviors a student might state, ‘‘If I
walk with a classmate that talks with me and not follow a
girl to class, who does not want to talk to me, I will get a
check on my point sheet.’’ An if–then causal relationship is
established between walking with a receptive friend and
getting points as reinforcement. According to Skinner
(1953), antecedents may function as rules or instructions.
The behavior may be changed without any apparent
shaping of contingencies. For instance, the same student
might state ‘‘If I want the girls to like me, I will walk with
them only after they invite me.’’ The rule is, the antecedent
specifies a behavior (walk when invited) and then a con-
sequence (girls will like me). The rules can be presented in
visual formats (written textual rules, pictorial examples),
and auditory formats using recordings on electronic devi-
ces. Initially, rules may need to be expressed aloud but
eventually can be replaced by self-statements that are never
expressed verbally, as a private event (Skinner 1953).
Rules should be repeated so that they become an automatic
process.
Increasing Areas of Interest beyond Obsessions
Many students with ASD have a tendency to engage in
obsessive or perseverative behaviors (Attwood 2007). The
stalking of others may be a manifestation of the obsessive
behavior. According to the principals of PBS, alternative
positive behaviors need to be developed and reinforced that
will replace the obsessive behaviors. Students with ASD
may need assistance finding age appropriate areas of
interest and to increase their variety of interests. These
areas of interest can be developed and explored with the
assistance of non-disabled peers, a classroom teacher, a
behaviorist, or other school staff. Once a variety of inter-
ests are explored, contingency contracts can be used to
reinforce the further development of those interests.
Through school inclusion, including membership on teams
and clubs, the student will have access to new activities and
information, as well as modeling of appropriate behaviors
by non-disabled peers. Also, membership in these activities
will provide opportunities for developing alternative areas
of interest. Students with ASD often isolate themselves and
choose to engage in their restricted interests, preferred
rituals, or obsessions as a method to calm their anxiety.
Exposure to counseling and anxiety reduction strategies
should be used in conjunction with access to non-disabled
peers and age appropriate activities.
Areas of special interest, obsessions, or perseverations
may never fully disappear but the students can be taught to
limit the obsessions by following the Premack Principle
(Premack 1959), which uses a high probability behavior to
reinforce a low probability behavior. In this case, an area of
high interest (obsession) can be used to reinforce activities
of lower interest. For example, Charlop-Christy and
Haymes (1998) used objects of obsession as reinforcers to
increase the task performance of students with ASD. This
token reinforcement system based upon obsessions was
more successful than standard token systems using other
reinforcers. In this study, the students all acquired the tasks
when accurate performance on the task was followed by
access to the obsession, such as, an adolescent with ASD
who engaged in looking up women’s and girl’s dresses (he
was obsessed with lingerie and underwear) decreased his
inappropriate behavior when he received access to a lin-
gerie catalog as a reinforcer for appropriate conversations
with females. In this example, the student’s social reper-
toire was expanded. He was given scripts for different
topics of conversation and he continued to receive access to
his obsession as a reinforcer for appropriate behavior.
Anger Management and Counseling
Counseling for stalking behaviors should also be available
by a qualified counselor with expertise in working with a
J Autism Dev Disord
123
student with ASD. Using the language competence of the
person, counseling can provide clarification to misinter-
pretations of events and experiences in social interactions
and provide acceptable problem solving strategies and/or
interventions (Tantam 2000). Many individuals with ASD
access counseling to learn skills, for example, skills for
managing anger. They may perceive the world as ‘‘unfair’’
in the applications of rules at school and counseling can
help them to understand the reasons for social rules. In
addition, they may recognize that they have difficulty
sustaining friendships and relationships but still desire
those relationships and this difficulty can lead them to both
depression and anger. Effective methods for counseling,
based in cognitive behavioral practice, focus on three
aspects for coping and compensatory skills. The first is
recognition of triggers. As related to the stalking behavior,
counselors can work with the student to recognize their
individual triggers for anxiety or anger. This information
concerning triggers can also be gathered during the func-
tional behavioral assessment. The next step involves
teaching self-calming techniques that are effective for the
student. Counselors will need to work with the student to
determine what techniques have the physiological effects
of calming for the student and are also socially appropriate
to use in inclusive settings. For example, one student may
select to squeeze his thighs tightly while another might
choose to take a sip of water from a water bottle. Deep
breathing is another common technique that is used for
calming. However, even though a behavior has been known
to have a calming effect upon individuals, it may not
function as calming behavior for an individual with ASD
(given their often unusual responses to sensory stimula-
tion). The final step in this process with a counselor is the
use of a self-management strategy, as described previously.
The student should be guided in their use of self-manage-
ment for engaging in the self-calming behaviors.
Pharmacotherapy
A final component in a treatment program for stalking
behaviors might involve the use of pharmacotherapy. A
functional analysis and behavioral treatments described
above should be first steps. Medication alone is rarely
effective; however, it can be effective when combined with
appropriate interventions as described above. Whereas, no
medications have Federal Drug Administration approval
for treatment of ASD or for stalking behavior in general,
there has been some clinical data supporting the use of
selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitors (SSRIs) for the
treatment of obsessions for children with ASD. For
example, Williams et al. (2010) evaluated SSRIs for
improvement of core features, as well as, non-core aspects
of self-injurious behaviors among individuals with ASD.
SSRIs are typically used for anxiety, depression, and
obsessive compulsive disorders in children and some
SSRIs have FDA approval for children age 7 years and
older. In general, pharmacological interventions are used to
treat co-morbid conditions such as OCD, anxiety, and
stereotypy. Whereas these are not stalking behaviors, they
are behaviors that can be seen in ASD and may have a
relation as seen with perseverative behaviors and fixations.
Discussion
Spitzberg and Cupach (2007), in their review of the litera-
ture on stalking, indicate that stalking most often evolves
out of a normal relationship. Stalking evolves due to a
failure to develop a successful romantic relationship
through using inappropriate courting behaviors. Some
stalkers with psychological disorders may turn violent in
their pursuit of the desired person. They further suggest that
we change the perception of stalking, as having psychiatric
or pathological causes, to viewing stalking as a failure in
relationship development (keeping in mind stalking has
both common mild forms, obsessive and intrusive, and then
more severe and dangerous forms). This viewpoint supports
the work of Stokes et al. (2007) indicating that the stalking
behaviors of students with ASD highlights the need for
social skill development through the direct teaching of
romantic social skills focusing on specific skills and
understanding for courting, dating, and pursuing more
intimate behaviors for a romantic relationship. Furthermore,
there is a need to raise school wide awareness of the char-
acteristics of students with ASD in order to increase an
understanding of their social needs, provide necessary
intervention strategies, and avoid misinterpretation of
‘‘stalking like’’ behaviors that may lead to social exclusion.
Future research is needed to determine the rate and types
of stalking behavior among students and adults with ASD.
Evaluation of appropriate functional assessment strategies
and effective intervention strategies for stalking behavior
by individuals with ASD is also needed. It is likely that a
combination of intervention strategies may be indicated. It
is also possible that different interventions may vary in
their effectiveness depending upon where the student with
ASD falls upon the spectrum.
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