The Victims of Crime

Question 1

victims - victimology

Answer 1

study of impact of crime on victims using victim surveys (CSEW) to uncover ‘dark figure’ of hidden crimes

Question 2

victims - customers of CJS

Answer 2

their needs are met rather than deal with offenders
police forced give priority to their accounts rather than police view if evidence to give them confidence in the CJS to increase crimes reported

Question 3

victims - social construction of victimisation

Answer 3

being a victim depends on who attaches the ‘victim’ label
there are unreported victims who don’t realise they have been victimised
those seen as responsible for their victimisation are denied the victim label

Question 4

victims - effects of victimisation

Answer 4

CSEW:
physical harm
material loss
high levels of worry 
PTSD
fear of further victimisation (domestic violence & racial harassment)

Question 5

victims - feminists

Answer 5

women victims have a constant fear of patriarchal based violence

Question 6

victims - gender

Answer 6

women are more likely than men to be a victim
crimes with women victims are less likely to be reported, recorded or result in convicted offender
young men have twice the risk of being a victim of violent crime than women

Question 7

victims - gender; domestic violence

Answer 7

1 in 4 women & 1 in 6 men
89% of violent incidents committed by men
150 people each year are killed by a partner
5% reported result in a conviction

Question 8

victims - why do victims do not report?

Answer 8

2/3 dont report
their afraid of further victimisation 
ashamed
see it is a private matter
females suffer repeat victimisation due to lack of resources or losing their children

Question 9

victims - rape

Answer 9

90% of rape victims are women
1 in 19 rape victims report it to the police
female victims rather than male suspects put on trial in rape trials
6% of rape reported lead to conviction
84% female victims knew the perpetrator

Question 10

victims - age

Answer 10

younger have a greater opportunity to commit crime so have greater risk of being victims of crime
likelihood of being a victim decreases with age
16-24 are 9X more likely to victims than aged 75+

Question 11

victims - how many 10-15 year olds experience violent crime?

Answer 11

6%

Question 12

victims - ethnicity

Answer 12

risk of being a victim to personal crime is higher for minority ethnic groups
they report higher levels of worry than white groups

Question 13

victims - incidents of racially motivated hate crimes

Answer 13

106,00 p/year
home office
ethnic minorities are 14X more likely to be victims of racially motivated incidents than whites

Question 14

victims - ethnic minority women

Answer 14

honour crimes and forced marriages linked to ethnic minority groups due to shame of victimisation brought on from women

Question 15

victims - social class

Answer 15

poorest section of working-class more likely to be victims of crime

Question 16

victims - where are high rates of victimisation found?

Answer 16

• among the unemployed, sick, low-income families

- areas of high physical disorder (vandalism), homes in poor conditions

Question 17

victims - percentage of being a victim

Answer 17

19. 5% - deprives areas

13. 4% - affluent areas

Question 18

victims - positivists victimology; victim proneness

Answer 18

identifies characteristics of individuals that make them more vulnerable to victimisation

Question 19

victims - positivists victimology; victim precipitation

Answer 19

victims are actively involved in their victimisation (provocative clothing, not locking doors or hiding valuables)

Question 20

victims - criticisms of positivists victimology

Answer 20

• blames victim instead of offender (feminists; blames victims of rape/domestic violence)
• downplays role of criminal justice agencies in tackling crime
• focuses too much on characteristics of victims and not wider structural factors
• doesn’t recognise situations where people are unaware of their victimisation

Question 21

victims - radical victimology; marxists & feminism

Answer 21

focuses on how wider social issues/circumstances produces victimisation

Question 22

victims - radical victimology; feminists

Answer 22

intimate crimes is due to male power in a patriarchal society as men are socialised as superior

Question 23

victims - radical victimology

Answer 23

under-protection by a racist police force causes high rates of victimisation among ethnic minorities

Question 24

victims - criticisms of radical victimology

Answer 24

ignores issue of victim precipitation and proneness

drug users are responsible for their victimisation