HUMAN

BEHAVIOR
AND
VICTIMOLO
GY
FINALS
Lesson 9
Concept of
victimology
 Brief History of Victimology
It was Benjamin Mendelson who coined the term
“victimology” in the 1940’s. Mendelson was a lawyer
from Burcharest, Romania who developed a scientific
method for the study of the criminal act that utilized
biopsychosocial data on the criminal, the victim and the
witnesses. He distributed the manuscript among medico-
legal experts in 1946 when he delivered one of the first
formal speeches on the subject of victimology in Romania
(Burgess, 2010).
 Mendelson developed victim typologies that identified victim
characteristics that might increase a person’s risk of victimization, or
even contribute to, or precipitate the victimization. He advised his
typology according to the degree of responsibility of the victim for his
victimization.
 Another pioneer in the field of victimology is Hans Von Hentig .
Others refer to him as the father of victimology , however, other
textbook credit Mendelson. Von Hentig was a German scholar who
taught at a university in the united states. He wrote an article called
“The Criminal and His Victime” , focusing on the interaction between
criminals and his victims, and published it in 1941. He also developed
his own victim typology consisting of 13 categories, based on
psychological, social and biological factors on contrast to Mendelson’s
categories based on guilt and responsibility. (Burgess, 2010)
 The first textbook written about victims was published in 1968 and was
authored by Stephen Schafer. Schafer was a lawyer born in Budapest,
Hungary who taught criminology at polytechnic of Central London
(now called University of Westminster). He later also taught at the
Florida State University and Northeastern University, both in the United
States of America, where he became a professor in Criminal Justice.
The book he wrote entitled “Restitution to Victims of Crimes”, was
the first book ever written about victims. He also wrote a book, entitled,
“The Victim and His Criminal”.
• Hans Von Hentig - Young, • 5. Most guilty victim
females, old, immigrants, • 6. Simulating or imaginary victim
Depressed, mentally defective/,
• Heartbroken, tormentor, deranged,
Acquisitive, dull normal, • Stephen schafer
minorities, wanton, Lonesome and • 1.unrelated victims
blocked
• 2.provocative victims
• Benjamin mendelsohn
• 3.precipitative victims
• 1. Completely innocent victim
• 4.biologically weak victims
• 2. Victim with minor guilt 5.socially weak victims
• 3. Victim as guilty as • 6. Self-victimizing
Offender/voluntary victim
• 7. Political victims
• 4. Victim more guilty than offender
 What is Victimology?

Victimology is the study of victimization,

including the relationship between the victims
and the offenders, the interactions between
victims and the criminal justice system and the
connection between victims and other societal
groups and institutions, such as media,
businesses and social movements.
It is also defined as the scientific study of the
physical, emotional and financial harm people suffer
because of illegal activities (Karmen,2010) This
definition focuses on the effects of crimes to the
victims.
 In simple terms, victimology tries to answer the
following question: what are the reasons a person
becomes a victim, why are certain people
victimized more than the rest, what makes a
person a target of offenders, and how dies a
person contribute to becoming a victim?
VICTIM
is the person to whom the crime was
committed. He also referred to as the
complainant or the offended party. Also,
victims can either be direct or primary
victims or indirect or secondary.
Direct or Primary Victim- is the person
who was actually harmed because of the
commission of the offense. Victims of rape,
theft, robbery, physical injuries are some
examples of direct or primary victims.
Indirect or Secondary Victims - refer to the
family or loved ones in the crimes of murder
or homicide.
VICTIM TYPOLOGY
Typology is a classification scheme that aids in the
understanding of what a group of people has in
common and how it differs from others. Victim
typology, then, refers to the classification of victims
based on the type of crimes usually committed or are
likely to be committed against them based on their
demographic profile, such as gender, age, occupation,
location of residence or place of work and the like.
Lesson 10
Traditional
concepts in
victimology
1. Victim-offender Relationship
This refers to the relationship of the victim with the
offender, and vice versa. It could be that the victim
personally knows the offender, may be actually
related to him by blood, or they may be co-workers,
neighbours or classmates, or even in a relationship
with each other . This relationship could be a factor
as to why he was victimized by the offender.
2. Victim Facilitation
This happen in situations wherein victims unknowingly,
carelessly, negligently and inadvertently make it easier fir the
criminal to commit crime, because of carelessness or
negligence on the part of the victim, the offender is given the
opportunity to actually commit the crime, such as in cases of
theft or robbery. It is called victim facilitation because in
effect, it was the victim who facilitated the commission of the
crime, meaning, it was the victim who made it possible for
the offender to commit the crime against him.
3. Victim precipitation
It is defined as the extent to which a victim is responsible for
his or her own victimization.
Active precipitation - Victims act provocatively. Use threats
or fighting words or even attack first. Eg: Dressing
provocatively leads to rape.
Passive precipitation -victims exhibits personal Characters
that unknowingly threatens/ Encourages the attacker.
Victims mere presence threatens the attackers Reputation,
status or economic well-being.
4. Victim resistance
Refers to the efforts of the victim to flight-off or repel the
offender. Some victims are strong enough to fight back,
such as males with a good body build or who possess some
knowlegde and skills in self-defense. In like manner,
females are generally considered physically weaker which
makes them easy target of offenders. Some people are also
emotionally weaker and give in easily to the demands of the
offenders, while some people have a stronger willpower to
resist.
5. Victim vulnerability
Refers to the tendency of a person to become
victimized without any fault oh his part. Such
person can easily become a victim because of
his personal circumtances, such as age and
state of mental health. Children are the best
examples of vulnerable persons.
6. Victim blame
It is common to hear people blame the victims for the crime
committed against him. Sometimes, even the victim himself
blames himself. In some ways, this is good because it shows
that people are aware that crime can be prevented if we
protect ourselves from criminals. However, this can also be a
negative thing because when we start blaming victim, then it
is like we are removing the blame from the offender. This can
make offenders feel like it is your fault that they victimized
you.
VICTM PATTERNS
The age, gender, marital status, educational background, level of
intellect, income, occupation, lifestyle or habits victim-offender
relationships and ecology are some of the factors that affect
victimization risks.
Results of various studies reveal that in terms of gender, males are more
likely to become victims of robbery and physical injuries. In terms of
income or economic status, the poor are most likely to become victims
of crimes because they live in areas that are crime-prone.
 It was also found out that unmarried or never been married
individuals are victimized more often than married people. This could
be because married people tend to have more stable routines and less
active social lives.
ECOLOGY
 Refers to the location or place of
commission of the crime. According to
statistics, victimization occurs more in large,
urban areas while victim rates are lower in
rural and suburban areas. Most crimes are
committed at night, and the most likely site
is an open, public area such as a street, park,
parking area, and other similar places.