Victimology: what is it and what is its object of study?

A discipline that studies crimes from the victims' point of view.

"28-year-old woman found dead in her home. Her husband called the police shortly thereafter in order to confess to her murder, only to shoot himself in the head with a pistol."

This type of news, unfortunately, is published or broadcast with some frequency by the media before the commission of a crime. When these types of acts occur, the police services and the justice system act, investigating what happened and taking into account a wide variety of knowledge when determining what could have happened and why it happened, based on the evidence.

The science that deals with the study of crime and its causes, ways to prevent it and how to deal with criminals is criminology. However, there is an essential element that does not appear among the above... Where is the victim? There is a discipline, currently inserted within criminology, which is in charge of its study: victimology..

What is victimology?

Coined by the psychiatrist Fredric Werthamthis term refers to the scientific discipline derived from criminology that studies the victims of crime in the various stages of victimization.

The creation of this discipline has allowed both the study and treatment of victims and family members of all types of crime, which traditional criminology ignored in order to focus on the figure of the offender. It is a relatively young scientific discipline, having its scientific beginnings in the 1930s.

This discipline has numerous variants that have focused their attention on different aspects and have different interpretations of reality. However, all the theories and all the theories and perspectives have in common their objective of study..

It can be said that, in a way, victimology focuses its attention precisely on the people who are in a more vulnerable situation and who, therefore, are the first to need to be studied the type of experiences they go through, their sources of discomfort and possible solutions.

Object of study of victimology

The main object of study of this discipline is the victim and his or her characteristics, as well as his or her relationship with the offender.The main object of study of victimology is the victim and his or her characteristics, as well as his or her relationship with the offender and his or her role in the criminal situation.

Specifically, it analyzes the set of factors that cause the person to become a victim, whether the situation has been caused by a second person or is due to the person's own actions or chance (such as an accident at work for example), the relationship of the facts with the law in force and the possible reparation of damages and the relationship between the aspects that can cause a person to become a victim and the occurrence of the crime.

What is a victim?

To better understand this object of study, it is worth defining what is meant by victim. According to UN General Assembly Resolution 40/34 of 1985, a victim is defined as a person or persons who have suffered physical, psychological or emotional harm, or an attack on and diminution of their fundamental rights as a result of acts or omissions that violate the law.

Similarly, their relatives or persons who have suffered harm in assisting the victim will also be considered as such..

Thus, it is understood that the harm experienced by the victims is not an isolated phenomenon that only affects them individually, but that those who suffer it are inserted in a social fabric through which the discomfort and deterioration of the quality of life is transmitted.

Methodology

As a scientific discipline, victimology has always been located in an empiricist positionmaking inductive hypotheses from observed cases. Thus, it requires surveys and observations of cases and victims in order to develop valid hypotheses that can contribute to explaining victimization processes.

Biopsychosocial elements, relationship with the subject who commits the crime and the crime are fundamental clues in order to elaborate a consistent study of the victim and his or her situation in the crime. However, this science must take into account both the need for its immediate use and the need to resemble other natural and social sciences.

The techniques employed are the observation of reality, the study and analysis of cases and statistics, interviews and techniques from other sciences such as psychology, medicine, history, economics or computer science, among others. from other sciences such as psychology, medicine, history, economics or computer science, among others.

The main mechanism by which victimology can act is through the reporting of a crime, together with the testimony of those affected. Even the absence of these elements is an important source of information, since it reflects the position of the various social groups and individuals with respect to the system.

Types of victims

As a science that studies victims of criminal offenses, numerous authors have made various classifications of victim typologies.

One of them is that of Jiménez de Asúawho divides victims into:

1. determined victim.

It is considered as such is considered to be a victim who is voluntarily chosen by the criminal.lThe victim is considered to be one who is chosen voluntarily by the perpetrator and not by chance. An example would be crimes of passion, revenge or crimes carried out by family members or close associates.

Indifferent victim

Chosen at random. The crime could be carried out with any other person without producing any change in the criminal. An example of this could be fraud or swindling, such as tricksters. It is also observed in some criminal acts carried out by psychopaths and serial killers.

3. Resistant victim

A victim who is capable of resisting and defending themselvesor who is attacked because of or in the knowledge that the subject was going to defend himself.

4. Coadjutant victim

Not always when a subject is a victim of a crime, he/she is a subject who is not linked to the criminal act. Thus, there are victims who actively participate in the crime, There are victims who actively participate in the crime, although they may act under duress..

Role in the protection of the victim

In addition to studying the victim and the process through which he or she has become a victim, victimology also has a very important role to play in post-crime action.victimology also has a very important role in post-crime action.. 

Specifically, its field of study allows the creation of services to victims, contributing together with psychologists and other professionals to preparing assistance programs, such as the creation of crisis centersThe study of the crime scene has also played a very important role in the post-crime response. Likewise, information and support provided to victims are generally the most important services.

On the other hand, efforts are also made to prevent the dynamics of personal relationships that often lead to the emergence of victims. Thus, victimology is in contact with many branches of psychology and forensic sciences.

Ethical caution

As a science that establishes close contact with the victims of crime, victimology must take special caution in the procedures employed in the practice of victimology.. It must be taken into account that the victim of a crime, in addition to suffering the crime per se, is subjected to the stress and tension produced by the investigation process (also reliving the event, often traumatic), and subsequently dealing with the consequences (physical, psychological, social or occupational) produced by the crime.

In this sense, victimology has to try not to cause secondary and/or tertiary victimization with its application in practice, that is, it has to try to prevent the realization of damage to the victim by the mere fact of relating, repeating or reliving traumatic experiences, both at the institutional and social level.

Bibliographical references:

• Fattah, E.A. (2000). Victimology: Past, Present and Future. Criminologie, vol. 33, 1. p.17-46.

• Gulotta, G. (1976). La vittima. Milano, Italy. Editore Guiffré

• Jiménez, L. (1961). The so-called victimology. In Estudios de derecho Penal y Criminología, I. Buenos Aires, Argentina: Bibliográfica Omeba.

• Langton, L. (2014). Socio-emotional impact of violent crime. Washington: Bureau of Justice Statistics.

• Lauritsen, J.L. (2010). Advances and Challenges in Empirical Studies on Victimization, Journal of Quantitative Criminology 26: 501-508.
• Marquez, A.E. (2011). Victimology as a study. Rediscovering the victim for the criminal process. Prolegomena Magazine. Rights and Values. Bogotá. Vol. XIV, 27.

• Marshall, L. E. & Marshall, W.L. (2011). Empathy and Antisocial Behaviour, Journal of Forensic Psychiatry & Psychology 22, 5: 742-759.

• McDonald, W. (1976). Towards a bicentennial revolution in criminal justice: the return of the victim, The American Criminal Law Review 13: 649-673.

• Neuman, E. (1994). El rol de la víctima en los delitos convencionales y no convencionales, 2nd ed: Buenos Aires: Universidad.

• Varona, G.; de la Cuesta, J.L.; Mayordomo, V. and Pérez, A.I. (2015) Victimology. An approach through its fundamental concepts as tools for understanding and intervention.