Victimology and its perspectives

S.Sanyal

VICTIMOLOGY
1. There are several crimes which are
Victimogensis.
2. Mendelsohn(1963),Reckless(1967),Hans Von
Hentig (1948) and Henry Ellenberger(1954)
are the contributors to this thought.
3. Ellenberger-In Crimogenesis there are
factors, which lead to criminal behavior; in
victimogenesis factors propel individuals
towards being victims

DOER VICTIM RELATIONSHIP

HANS Von HENTIG - There are certain kind of victims
for the criminal

1.Poor and the ignorant immigrant.

2.Those found intoxicated or sleeping persons.
3.Introvert types of people, hesitant to complain damage.
4.In cases of burglary the alleged victims are in reality
the perpetrators of crime.

4 Discernable attitudes which determine the

affinity of victim and the doer-

Apathetic, Lethargic.
Submitting, conniving, passively submitting.
Co-operative, contributory.
Provocative, instigative, soliciting.

There are psychological types of

individuals who generate aggression:

a) Depressed,
b) Greedy,
c) Wanton or sensual,
d) Lonesome and heart broken,
e) The tormentor,
f) The blocked
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There are two models Doer Victim Model: the role of the victim
is mainly that of being available to a doer,
or being a likely prospects among
alternates either through helplessness or
some other vulnerable condition.
Victim-Doer-Victim Model :- victim
generates the criminal behavior in the
doer, for he has triggered the doer. May be
the doer is not in a state to commit crime
before he meets the victim
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There are 3 different grades of victim

offender relations
1) The victim has no prior knowledge of
the crime. He dislikes being made a
victim. He informs the Police.
2) This category in the similar given
situation refrains from calling the Police.
3) The victim has some prior awareness of
the possible crime.

According to Mack, these 3 categories

highlight some major social situations a) The victim himself a criminal.
b) The victim is a near a criminal.
c) The victim has no open criminal
associations.
d) The victim belongs to an ethnic minority
group.

Reasons for non-reporting of crime by victims 1.Too ignorant or indifferent to report.

2.The loss is petty.
3.The victim may not wish the offence to be
discovered.
4.Fear of annoyance or publicity, blackmail,
indecent sex assault, rape and abortion.
5.Ineffectiveness of the police.
6.Fear of reprisal.
The inconvenience and espense of getting
involved with the police and possibly testifying in
court being too much.
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Causes of victimization
1) Social Disequilibrium.
2) Property and land disputes.
3) Caste rivalries.
4) Personal vengeance and eximity.
5) Rural factionalism.
6) Deteriorating police administration.
7) Political clashes and difference.
8)Social prestige arising out of family disputes.
9) Immoral and broken home.
10) Criminal neighborhood.
11) Communal tension.
12)Mal-adjustment and emotional instability.
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Research study by R.F. Sparks, H.G. Genn and

D.J.Dodd(1977) Sample 545 persons above 18 in
London.
Findings:
1)There was a discrepancy between the survey results
and the data.
2)Higher rates of victimization of residents in the inner
cities than in the suburban and rural areas.
3)Higher proportion of males reported more incidents of
crime than females. Crimes of violence was twice higher
than in females.
4)Victimization of persons between age of 26-30 years
for crimes of violence and 31-35 for property offences.
5)Victimization is found to be intra-racial rather than
inter-racial i.e. black victims hig by black offenders and
vice-versa.
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Victim Prone Personalities

Two basic varieties of participation
1)Victimization is guaranteed
2)Victimization is invited

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Repeat victimization leads to victimprone personality.

Ellenberger:- there are individuals
probably in great numbers, whom one
could consider, as born victims. They
attract criminals not so much by external
circumstances or fleeting event, but by
reasons of a permanent and unconscious
predisposition to play the role of victim

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Model-I
Victimology and the Human Risk Problem.
Crime

Criminology

Victim

Victimology

Accident

Safety

Safety Human Living

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Model-II
Victim Offender Offense

Offender

Victim

Offense
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CHARACTERISTICS OF VICTIMS:

1) Easy Victims.
2) Difficult victims.
Biological type of victim who seem
continuously and excessively prone to
becoming victim of crime.
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1.Incapable to perceive or deal with a Risk

situation.
a) Skills for perceiving and diagnosing high-risk
situation are not existent or not developed, than
person become susceptible to victimization. It
may be termed as accident pronness.
b) Charges in persons emotional state also
disturb the diagnostic skill to manage risk
situation.
c) there are people who behave in a maladaptive way. Some overreact to warning by
becoming excessively excited or by developing
psychoneurotic symptoms. Other under-react by
denying the threat and failing to take essential
precautions.
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