The Supplemental Victimization Survey (SVS) was designed to measure the prevalence, characteristics, and consequences of nonfatal stalking so that policymakers, academic researchers, practitioners at the Federal, state and local levels, and advocates could make informed decisions concerning policies and programs.
Eligible respondents for the SVS include all civilian, non-institutionalized persons in the U.S. age 16 years or older who successfully completed their NCVS interview by self-response. NCVS proxy interviews were considered a response for NCVS but were not eligible for SVS. Each month the U.S. Census Bureau selects respondents for the NCVS using a "rotating panel" design. Households are randomly selected and all age-eligible individuals become part of the panel. The sample of households is divided into groups or rotations. Once in the sample, respondents are interviewed every six months for a total of seven interviews over a three-year period. The first interview is considered the incoming rotation. The second through the seventh interview are in the continuing rotations. The first interview is face-to-face; the rest are by telephone unless the circumstances call for an in-person interview. After the seventh interview the household leaves the panel and a new household is rotated into the sample. The rotation scheme is used to reduce respondent burden that may result if they were to remain permanently in the sample. The SVS was administered at all NCVS households interviewed from July through December 2019.
Cross-sectional
From July to December 2019, household members age 16 or older were administered the SVS interview after completing an NCVS interview. Data collection includes a screener and incident survey. Eligible persons in the household were administered a set of screening questions, and any persons who met the criteria for stalking were administered the entire SVS. The screener questions collect the following information: (1) types of unwanted contacts or behaviors experienced; (2) repeated course of conduct (i.e. experiencing the same behavior or contact more than once, or experiencing two or more different behaviors one time); (3) actual fear; (4) substantial emotional distress; and (5) reasonable fear. When a respondent reports an eligible stalking victimization, the SVS incident instrument is then administered to collect detailed information about this victimization to learn more about the nature and consequences of the victimization. See the SVS survey instrument for more information on how respondents screen in as a stalking victim.
individual
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