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Protecting the prominent? A research journey with Paul Mullen
Author(s) -
James David V.
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
criminal behaviour and mental health
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.63
H-Index - 54
eISSN - 1471-2857
pISSN - 0957-9664
DOI - 10.1002/cbm.769
Subject(s) - stalking , interpretation (philosophy) , mental illness , public figure , psychology , criminology , kingdom , sociology , psychiatry , political science , law , mental health , computer science , paleontology , politics , biology , programming language
Recent research from the United Kingdom has called into question entrenched assumptions from the USA about public figure threat assessment, in particular the low importance given to mental illness and to the making of threats. This article reviews some of the evidence, concluding that the high prevalence of psychotic illness in threateners and harassers of public figures and the frequency of warning behaviours determines that these factors should be accorded a central role in the assessment and management of such cases. It is noted that data in US studies do not differ greatly from those in UK studies, but rather their interpretation. The practical benefits of attending to the factors in question are illustrated by reference to the activities of the United Kingdom's Fixated Threat Assessment Centre. The overlap is noted between the fields of public figure threat assessment and stalking, which have hitherto developed separately. The issue of public figure threat assessment is used to illustrate some of the attitudes and personal qualities which have typified the career and achievements of Paul Mullen in forensic psychiatry research. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.