Gang stalking

Gang stalking or group-stalking is a set of persecutory beliefs in which those affected believe they are
being followed, stalked, and harassed by a large number of people.[1] The term is associated with the
"targeted individual" ("T.I.") virtual community formed by like-minded individuals who claim their lives
are disrupted from being stalked by organized groups intent on causing them harm.[2][3]

Terminology
The concept of stalking arose in the 1980s following increased legal equity for women and prosecution of
domestic violence. Generally, stalking has a single perpetrator, who may sometimes recruit others to act
vicariously on their behalf, usually unwittingly. Beginning in the early 2000s, the term gang stalking
became popularized to describe a different experience of repeated harassment which instead comes from
multiple people who organize around a shared purpose, with no one person solely responsible.[4]

Online communities
A 2016 article in The New York Times estimated that more than 10,000 people were participating in online
communities "organized around the conviction that its members are victims of a sprawling conspiracy to
harass thousands of everyday Americans with mind-control weapons and armies of so-called gang
stalkers".[2] The article identified a 2015 paper by Sheridan and James entitled "Complaints of group
stalking ('gang stalking'): an exploratory study of their nature and impact on complainants" as the only
scientific study of the topic at the time.[5][2]

Hundreds of these communities exist online.[6] News reports have described how groups of Internet users
have cooperated to exchange detailed conspiracy theories involving gang stalking.[2] Kershaw &
Weinberger say, "Web sites that amplify reports of mind control and group stalking" are "an extreme
community that may encourage delusional thinking" and represent "a dark side of social networking. They
may reinforce the troubled thinking of the mentally ill and impede treatment."[7][8] A 2020 study established
a framework to classify and examine the phenomenon of individuals with the subjective experience of
being gang stalked. The study confirmed the subsequent "serious" sequelae of their experience and
recommended further research.[4]

Persecutory delusion
Those who believe they are victims report that they believe the motivation for the gang stalking is to disrupt
every part of their lives.[2] The activities involved are described as including electronic harassment, the use
of "psychotronic weapons", directed-energy weapons, cyberstalking, hypnotic suggestion transmitted
through remotely-accessed electronic devices, and other alleged mind control techniques. These have been
reported by external observers as being examples of belief systems as opposed to reports of objective
phenomena.[9] Among the community of targeted individuals, gang stalking is described as a shared
experience where the gang stalkers all coordinate to harass individuals, and the individuals share their
victim experiences with each other.[10][11][12]
A study from Australia and the United Kingdom by Lorraine Sheridan and David James[13] compared 128
self-defined victims of 'gang stalking' with a randomly selected group of 128 self-declared victims of
stalking by an individual. All 128 'victims' of gang stalking were judged to be delusional, compared with
only 5 victims of individual stalking. There were highly significant differences between the two samples on
depressive symptoms, post-traumatic symptomatology and adverse impact on social and occupational
function, with the self-declared victims of gang stalking being more severely affected. The authors
concluded that "group stalking appears to be delusional in basis, but complainants suffer marked
psychological and practical sequelae. This is important in the assessment of risk in stalking cases, early
referral to psychiatric services and allocation of police resources."[13]

While a great majority of those who claim to be targeted individuals do not pose danger to others,[14] one
report found that some have acted out with violence, sometimes extreme.[15] In 2022, a reported believer in
gang stalking was accused of killing four people in Ohio; he uploaded a video before the shooting in which
he said that he wanted to "help other targeted individuals",[14] and that he will conduct "the first
counterattack against mind control in history".[16] A manifesto was found on his computer, in which he
wrote that his neighbors are mind-controlling terrorists.[16]

Notable claimants
James Tilly Matthews (1770–1815), English businessman[17]
Francis E. Dec (1926–1996), American lawyer[18]
Gloria Naylor (1950–2016), American novelist[19]
Isaac Brock (1975–present), American musician[20]

See also
Cyberstalking
Fair game (Scientology)
Mass surveillance
Noisy investigation
Psychosis
The Truman Show delusion

References
1. Lustig, A; Brookes, G; Hunt, D (5 March 2021). "Linguistic Analysis of Online Communication
About a Novel Persecutory Belief System (Gangstalking): Mixed Methods Study" (https://ww
w.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7980115). Journal of Medical Internet Research. 23 (3):
e25722. doi:10.2196/25722 (https://doi.org/10.2196%2F25722). PMC 7980115 (https://www.
ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7980115). PMID 33666560 (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.g
ov/33666560).
2. Mcphate, Mike (10 June 2016). "United States of Paranoia: They See Gangs of Stalkers" (htt
ps://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/11/health/gang-stalking-targeted-individuals.html). The New
York Times. New York City. ISSN 0362-4331 (https://www.worldcat.org/issn/0362-4331).
Retrieved 20 August 2016.
 3. Flatley, Joseph (2 February 2017). "Paranoid delusions in the police state" (https://theoutline.
com/post/995/targeted-individuals-paranoid-delusions-in-the-age-of-surveillance). The
Outline.
4. Sheridan, L; James, DV; Roth, J (6 April 2020). "The Phenomenology of Group Stalking
('Gang-Stalking'): A Content Analysis of Subjective Experiences" (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.g
ov/pmc/articles/PMC7178134). International Journal of Environmental Research and Public
Health. 17 (7): 2506. doi:10.3390/ijerph17072506 (https://doi.org/10.3390%2Fijerph1707250
6). PMC 7178134 (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7178134).
PMID 32268595 (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32268595).
5. Sheridan, Lorraine P.; James, David V. (3 September 2015). "Complaints of group-stalking
('gang-stalking'): an exploratory study of their nature and impact on complainants". The
Journal of Forensic Psychiatry & Psychology. 26 (5): 601–623.
doi:10.1080/14789949.2015.1054857 (https://doi.org/10.1080%2F14789949.2015.105485
7). S2CID 143326215 (https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:143326215).
6. Tait, Amelia (7 August 2020). " "Am I going crazy or am I being stalked?" Inside the disturbing
online world of gangstalking" (https://www.technologyreview.com/2020/08/07/1006109/insid
e-gangstalking-disturbing-online-world/). MIT Technology Review.
7. Kershaw, Sarah (12 November 2008). "Sharing Their Demons on the Web" (https://www.nyti
mes.com/2008/11/13/fashion/13psych.html). The New York Times. Retrieved 1 August 2010.
8. Weinberger, Sharon (14 January 2007). "Mind Games" (https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp
-dyn/content/article/2007/01/10/AR2007011001399.html). The Washington Post.
Washington DC: Nash Holdings LLC. Retrieved 1 August 2010.
9. Kiberd, Roisin (22 July 2016). "The Nightmarish Online World of 'Gang-Stalking' " (https://arc
hive.today/20160722181842/http://motherboard.vice.com/read/the-nightmarish-online-world-
of-gang-stalking). Motherboard. Vice Media. Archived from the original (http://motherboard.vi
ce.com/read/the-nightmarish-online-world-of-gang-stalking) on 22 July 2016. Retrieved
20 August 2016.
10. Pierre, Joe (20 October 2020). "Gang Stalking: Real-Life Harassment or Textbook
Paranoia?" (https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/psych-unseen/202010/gang-stalking-
real-life-harassment-or-textbook-paranoia). Psychology Today.
11. Pierre, Joe (October 31, 2020). "Gang Stalking: Conspiracy, Delusion, and Shared Belief" (ht
tps://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/psych-unseen/202010/gang-stalking-conspiracy-del
usion-and-shared-belief). Psychology Today.
12. Pierre, Joe (November 16, 2020). "Gang Stalking: A Case of Mass Hysteria?" (https://www.ps
ychologytoday.com/us/blog/psych-unseen/202011/gang-stalking-case-mass-hysteria).
Psychology Today.
13. Sheridan, Lorraine P.; James, David V. (3 September 2015). "Complaints of group-stalking
('gang-stalking'): an exploratory study of their nature and impact on complainants". The
Journal of Forensic Psychiatry & Psychology. 26 (5). Abingdon, England: Routledge: 601–
623. doi:10.1080/14789949.2015.1054857 (https://doi.org/10.1080%2F14789949.2015.1054
857). ISSN 1478-9949 (https://www.worldcat.org/issn/1478-9949). S2CID 143326215 (http
s://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:143326215).
14. Reese, Garrett (2022-08-09). "The investigation continues after a man is accused of killing
four people in Butler Township" (https://www.wyso.org/local-and-statewide-news/2022-08-0
9/steven-marlow-butler-township-ohio). WYSO. Retrieved 2023-02-09.
15. Sarteschi, Christine M. (March 2018). "Mass Murder, Targeted Individuals, and Gang-
Stalking: Exploring the Connection". Violence and Gender. 5 (1): 45–54.
doi:10.1089/vio.2017.0022 (https://doi.org/10.1089%2Fvio.2017.0022).
16. " 'For me, it was an easy decision': Ohio shooting suspect says" (https://www.wkbn.com/new
s/ohio/for-me-it-was-an-easy-decision-ohio-shooting-suspect-says/). WKBN.com. 2022-08-
24. Retrieved 2023-02-09.
17. Sarteschi, Christine M. (March 2018). "Mass Murder, Targeted Individuals, and Gang-
Stalking: Exploring the Connection". Violence and Gender. 5 (1): 45–54.
doi:10.1089/vio.2017.0022 (https://doi.org/10.1089%2Fvio.2017.0022).
18. Jeffrey Sconce (17 January 2019). The Technical Delusion: Electronics, Power, Insanity (http
s://books.google.com/books?id=k22DDwAAQBAJ). Duke University Press. pp. 237–245.
ISBN 978-1-4780-0244-4.
19. Gordon, Ed (January 23, 2006). " '1996': Under the Watchful Eye of the Government" (https://
www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5168026). News & Notes. NPR.
20. "Isaac Brock Reviews Every Modest Mouse Album" (https://uproxx.com/indie/isaac-brock-int
erview-modest-mouse-reviews-every-album-the-golden-casket/). UPROXX. 2021-06-16.
Retrieved 2024-03-06.

External links
"The Nightmare World of Gang Stalking" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5LPS7E-0tuA)
(video). YouTube. Vice Media. 7 November 2017.
"Meet the Targeted Individual Community" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=62s3FinAoC
0) (video). YouTube. Vice Media. May 24, 2017.

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Gang_stalking&oldid=1225275722"