schmall crim today8e_ppt_ch10

Criminology TodayAn Integrated Introduction

CHAPTER

Criminology Today: An Integrated Introduction, 8eFrank Schmalleger

Copyright © 2017 by Pearson Education, Inc.All Rights Reserved

Criminal Victimization

10



Hidden Victims

• Dark figure of crime Unreported crimes not reflected in

official statistics Some information available from self-

report surveys• Undiscovered crimes

Crimes not known to victims Many committed using technology



Victimization by the Numbers

• Sources of official U.S. crime statistics National Crime Victimization Survey

(NCVS)• Collected by Bureau of Justice Statistics

UCR/NIBRS program• Run by the FBI• Uniform Crime Reports (UCR)• National Criminal Incident-Based

Reporting System (NIBRS)



The NCVS

• Main source of information on criminal victimization

• Self-report data from victims on non-fatal personal crimes and household property crimes

• Includes data on reported and unreported crimes

continued on next slide



The NCVS

• Data obtained from a nationally representative sample of ~169,000 persons aged 12+ living in US households



Critique of the NCVS

• Possible overreporting• Definitions of crimes do not correspond

to federal or state statutes.• Changes to NCVS categories make it

difficult to compare NCVS findings over time.



The Uniform Crime Reporting Program

• Run by the FBI since 1929• Includes information on reported crimes• Collects information on 8 serious crimes

and arrest data on additional crimes• Data comes from law enforcement

agencies.



Advantages of NIBRS

• Provides broad range of crime data• Victimization data categorized by age

and type of crime• Data on victim-offender relationships• Information on timing of victimizations




Advantages of NIBRS

• Data on victimizations involving weapons

• Data on co-occurring victimization in a given offense

• Statistics on case clearances• A more complete picture of crime and

victimization



UCR Critique

• UCR/NIBRS program only includes crimes that are reported by the police.

• Rape is the most underreported crime.• Many other crimes are underreported

as well, including larceny.



Comparing the UCR and the NCVS

• Similarities Measure same subset of serious crimes Similar definitions of most crimes

• Differences Program objectives differ Measure non-identical sets of crimes UCR provides property crime counts per

capita; NCVS counts crimes per household.



Changing Offense Patterns

• Sharp decline in crime in early 1940s• Dramatic increase in crime from 1960s

to 1990s• Decrease in crime since mid-1990s• Some evidence we may be on the cusp

of a new cycle of increased criminal activity



Demographic Correlates of Crime

• Demographic characteristics are significantly correlated with victimization risk.

• "Typical" violent crime victim: socioeconomically disadvantaged young black male living in inner city region of large metropolitan area

• Victimization risk varies by type of crime.



Revictimization and Polyvictimization

• Polyvictimization Multiple instances of varied

victimizations Polyvictimization has a more negative

impact than being the victim of one type of chronic victimization.

• Revictimization Continued victimization by the same

offender committing the same crime



The Developmental Victimization Survey (DVS)

• National phone survey of 2,030 children and youth aged 10–17 in 2002-2003

• Information on younger children (age 2–9) obtained from parents/caregivers

• Two follow-up surveys also conducted




The Developmental Victimization Survey (DVS)

• Conceptual model showing 4 pathways leading to child polyvictimization Living in a dangerous family Having a family with problems (money,

employment, substance abuse, etc.) Living in or moving into a dangerous

community Being a child with preexisting emotional

problems that increase risky behavior



Psychological Impact of Victimization

• Victims often experience socio-emotional impacts of crime.

• Victims of serious violence especially vulnerable

• Symptoms of stress can be physical as well as emotional.



The Physical Impact of Victimization

• Crime may result in direct physical injury as well as other post-crime physical reactions.

• Physical injuries range from minor to deadly.

• Injuries can be life-threatening, result in long-term disability or permanent disfigurement.

• Not all physical injuries obvious



Economic Loss

• Includes immediate losses from victimization as well as other costs Medical/mental health costs Repairs to property/possessions Increased insurance premiums Security system installation

• Participation in justice system can have substantial personal costs as well.




Economic Loss

• Costs due to relocating a residence• Economic productivity at work may

suffer.• Family of murder victim having to bear

funeral and burial expenses• Financial burdens of victimization

especially difficult for economically marginalized, young, disabled



Secondary Victimization

• Social injuries resulting from response of social institutions and individuals to the victim

• Occurs as result of initial/primary victimization

• May involve justice system officials, members of the public, media




Secondary Victimization

• Not the same as "secondary victim" Person who suffers unintended

consequences when others are victimized



Victimization as a Risk Factor for Crime

• Research shows women's victimization can significantly contribute to future criminal involvement.

• Victimization can lead to criminality through direct and indirect ways.



Victimology

• Victimology A subfield of criminology The scientific study of all aspects of

criminal victimization Includes the process of victimization, the

criminal, the victim, the justice system, society




Victimology

• Victimologists study vulnerable groups to understand the victimization process.



Blaming the Victim

• Victimogenesis The origin/cause of victimization

• Early victimologists classified the degree to which victims contributed to their own victimization.



Victim Precipitation

• Contribution made by the victim to the criminal event

• Main types Passive• Victim unknowingly encourages the

offender. Active• Victim literally provokes the victimization.




Victim Precipitation

• Ways in which victims contribute to their own victimization Victim facilitation• Fail to take simple precautions against

victimization Victim provocation• Victim as initial aggressor

Victim initiation• Victim attracts offender's attention.



Victim Precipitation Research

• Marvin Wolfgang Found 26% of homicides result of active

victim precipitation• Beniamin Mendelsohn

Six-part typology based on degree of victim culpability





• Hans von Hentig 13-category taxonomy identifying

psychological, social, biological factors correlated with victimization risk

• Stephen Schafer "Functional responsibility" 7-category typology based on degree of

provocation





• Menachim Amir 19% of forcible rapes involving female

victims were victim precipitated



Victimization and Lifestyle

• Victimology theories of 1970s shifted focus to people's choices that affect availability to offenders, make them easier targets.

• Key approaches Lifestyle theory Routine activities approach



Lifestyle Theory

• Lifestyle Style of life, the way a person lives Some lifestyles favor victimization

because they offer more opportunities• Demographic variables determine

victimization risk through their effect on lifestyle.

• Some populations are at heightened risk due to their status (e.g., elderly).



Routine Activities Theory

• Examines interaction of motivated offenders, suitable targets, and capable guardians

• Individual's everyday actions contribute to likelihood of victimization.



The Situational Model

• Situational insights combine to elicit a criminal response from individual actors.

• Crime may result from temptation, bad company, idleness, provocation.




The Situational Model

• Model defines what constitutes an opportunity for crime.

• Can prevent crime by changing potential victim's routines or hardening targets



Deviant Places Theory

• Spatially oriented theory• Victimization most frequent in socially

disorganized high-crime areas• People become victims as a result of

exposure to these areas.• Focus is on geographically-determined

risk of coming into contact with an offender, regardless of lifestyle, behavior, personal characteristics





• Certain neighborhood conditions produce stigmatized neighborhoods with bad reputations.

• Stigmatized neighborhoods increase risk of victimization for those living or visiting but most residents do not become criminal.





• Theory depends on ecological features of location, not on characteristics of residents.



A History of the Victim

• Victims rarely had a role in the justice system other than testifying at trial.

• Needs/problems largely ignored• 1982 President's Task Force on Victims

of Crime gave focus to victims' rights movement




A History of the Victim

• Movement to add victims' rights amendments to constitutions No federal constitutional amendment

but 30+ states have amendments



Victims' Rights Legislation

• 1982 Victim and Witness Protection Act Judges must consider victim impact

statements at federal sentencing hearings.

• 1984 Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) Established federal Crime Victims Fund

to help states develop victims' assistance and compensation programs





• 1994 Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act Federal right of allocution Federal ex offenders and child molesters

must pay restitution. Rape shield law protections extended to

civil and criminal cases





• 1994 Violence against Women Act Addressed concerns about violence

against women (sexual violence, domestic abuse)

• 2001 USA PATRIOT Act amended VOCA to make victims of terrorism eligible for victims' compensation.





• 2004 Crime Victims' Rights Act Established statutory rights for victims

of federal crimes



Restorative Justice (RJ)

• Philosophical basis of victims' movement

• Emphasizes offender accountability and victim reparation




Restorative Justice (RJ)

• Community safety dimension recognizes that the justice system has responsibility to protect public.

• Accountability element defines criminal conduct in terms of offender obligation.



Victim Restitution

• Sentencing options seeking to restore victim frequently focus on restitution payments by offenders

• All states have passed laws providing for monetary payments to victims.

• Programs generally have eligibility requirements and limit maximum amount of compensation that can be received.