Lectures 6-7

Question 1

Victimology Timeline

Answer 1

1940s - victim responsibility over rights
Von Hentig 1948 - victim propensity
Mendelsohn 1956 - victim culpability
Wolfgang 1958 - victim precipitation
Amir 1971 - built on wolfgangs precipitation, “tempted offender”, victim at centre
Franklin and Franklin 1976 - victim behaviour explains act, activates offender, necessary to cause act

Question 2

Factors in common in victim precipitation?

Answer 2

victim and offender prior relationship
series of escalating disagreements
victim consumed alcohol

Question 3

Eras of Victimology

Answer 3

radical victimology 1970/80s: highlighted crimes against poor / hidden victimisation
critical vctimology 1990s: highlighted sources of structural inequality
drew attention to crimes of powerful
focused on victims rights and needs rather than deservingness

Question 4

Christie (1986)

Answer 4

The ideal victim
Weak
Carrying out respectable project
Could not be blamed for being where they were
Offender big and bad and unknown
Victim has right balance of power, influence and sympathy

Question 5

How did the ideal victim change victimology

Answer 5

Expands previously narrow concept of typology and culpability
Objectivity over subjectivity
Objective ‘victim value’ = legitimacy
Moves towards identifiable/ universal conception
Includes cultural differences
Hobbs and Hammerton 2014 - ideal victim used by politicians to promote responses to crime

Question 6

Non-ideal victims?

Answer 6

Carrabine 2004 - chronically abused housewife
Indirect victims / white collar criminals are ignored

Question 7

Duggan (2018)

Answer 7

Updated Christies criteria - considered how framing affects their perception as ideal or not