Victimology, 7th ed.
by William G. Doerner & Steven P. Lab
Glossary
absolute exemption when husbands are not prosecuted for spousal rape under any condition
abuse any non-accidental infliction of injury that seriously impairs a child’s physical or mental health
abusive head trauma (ABT) associated with the shaken baby syndrome
acquaintance rape see date rape
action stage when a person achieves the goals and makes headway in terms of eradicating objectionable behavior
advance fee fraud schemes enticing victims to send funds or pay fees in exchange for a promised item or service that would greatly benefit the victim
agent provocateur term coined by von Hentig to indicate that the victim may help provoke the victimization incident
ageism the stereotyping of older individuals and treating them differently because of their age
aggravated assault “an unlawful attack by one person upon another for the purpose of inflicting severe or aggravated bodily injury” (FBI)
aggravating circumstances situations that render the crime more heinous or despicable
allocution an oral presentation of a victim impact statement
Amber alert a plan developed whereby local radio stations and television channels would broadcast vital information so that anybody spotting the victim and/or the abductor could notify the authorities
anticipatory grief the preparations that people can make to cushion the impact of death when a loss is imminent or expected to take place
arson “any willful or malicious burning or attempting to burn, with or without intent to defraud, a dwelling house, public building, motor vehicle or aircraft, personal property of another, etc.” (FBI)
bank and financial account schemes activities thatinvolve getting victims to disclose personal and financial information that the offender can use to access the victim’s funds or valuables
battered-child syndrome the syndrome by which“young children who have received serious physical abuse, generally from a parent or foster parent” (Kempe et al., 1962)
battered woman syndrome the syndrome by whichwomen are so traumatized by previous beatings that they simply seize the opportunity to kill their assailants to prevent any further victimization episodes
battering episode the culmination of the frustrations where the perpetrator is out of control and acts in a rage
bias crime see hate crime
boost explanation see event dependency
bounding the idea of setting a reference point for respondents in victimization surveys; typically a first survey serves as the calendar reference point for the second, the second for the third, and so on
burglary “the unlawful entry of a structure to commit a felony or theft” (FBI)
central register a depository that stores records of all allegations of child abuse and neglect
child fatality review team a team thatinvestigates child deaths to determine whether maltreatment was involved
child rape an adult having forcible sexual intercourse with a child under the age of 12
Children’s Advocacy Center (CAC) an umbrella organization, independent of the criminal justice system, that brings together child protective services workers, law enforcement officers, the prosecutor’s office, educators, mental health counselors, and medical personnel in an effort to provide a coordinated response and seamless service delivery to maltreated children
circle sentencing sometimes referred to as healing circles or peacemaking circles; members from across the community participate in determining the appropriate sanctions for offenders
civil restitution lien when the sentencing court, at the request of the victim, levies a claim against any real or personal property the convicted offender currently possesses or may come to own
compassion fatigue “refers to a physical, emotional and spiritual fatigue or exhaustion that takes over a person and causes a decline in his or her ability to experience joy or to feel and care for others”
completely innocent victim one of the types in Mendelsohn’s typology of victims; thosewho exhibited no provocative or facilitating behavior prior to the offender’s attack
computer-assisted telephone interviews (CATI) a survey technique that uses a computer to prompt the interviewer with the proper questions
Conflict Tactics Scale (CTS) a measuring tool used frequently to assess the extent of marital violence; represents a range of responses to conflict, extending from nonviolent to violent actions
contemplation stage the stage at which a subject recognizes the need for modification and starts thinking about the best way to embark upon the process
contributory misconduct the idea that the victim must not share any criminal responsibility for the event
cost-benefit analysis assessment of the costs involved in taking action against the benefits to be accrued
criminal homicide the “willful (non-negligent) killing of one human being by another" (FBI)
criminal-victim dyad a term used byvon Hentig to discuss the relationship between the criminal and victim and the possibility of the victim being an aggressor (see agent provocateur)
criminogenic effect when arresting or otherwise officially handling an offender may cause greater subsequent offending
crisis reaction repair cycle a very predictable sequence during the recovery of victims, particularly victims of sexual assault
critical victimology avictimological approach that questions the basic foundations of what crime is and questions why certain acts are sanctioned
culture conflict a conflict created whereby following one set of cultural (or subcultural) practices, the individual is violating the proscriptions of another culture
cyber attacks computer viruses, denials of service, and electronic vandalism or sabotage
cybercrime “crime that occurs when computers or computer networks are involved as tools, locations, or targets of crime” (Newman, 2010)
cyber theft theft of money, computer-based embezzlement, theft of intellectual property, fraud, and theft of data
cycle of violence (child abuse) the idea that children who are abused or watch their parents engage in violent outbursts toward each other will come to accept these behaviors as permissible and act in a similar fashion later in life
cycle of violence(intimate partner violence) the idea that violence between intimate partners tends to have three distinct stages: (1) the tension-building phase, (2) the battering episode, and (3) the reconciliation period
dark figure of crime offenses that are not known by the police and therefore are not included in the UCR crime counts
date rape rape where the victim and offender know one another and are engaged in friendly, non-combative interaction up until the attack
death notification the task of notifying family members about the death of another family member
defendant anindividual accused of a criminal act
derivative victims people who, while not direct crime victims, are those whose lives have been touched by some tumultuous event
deterrence preventing future transgressions by eliminating any enrichment or gain from criminal activity while imposing pain or punishment
differential association theory a perspective that argues that most learning comes from interpersonal contacts that vary in frequency, duration, priority, and intensity
differential distribution of violent crime rates the fact that murder rates are not uniformly dispersed throughout time and space
differential identification a perspective that proposes that personal contact is not necessary for the transmission of behavioral guidelines; both real and fictional presentations in the media, particularly television, can serve to define behaviors as either acceptable or unacceptable
disenchantment through action when a therapist opens a couple session by asking the male to give his version of what is taking place within the relationship
disenchantment through avoidance when a counselor sidesteps the issue of violence and stands back and waits for the victim to broach the topic
disinhibition the belief that the use of alcohol or other substances weakens restraints and allows an individual to act in a way he would not normally act
dispute resolution a mechanism for bringing together the parties involved in a situation to work together to resolve the problem rather than having some outside authority impose a solution
double-victimization the idea that victims sustain costs both from the hands of the criminals and then by participating in the criminal justice system
egoistic the idea that man requires satisfaction in his endeavors in order to be happy
event dependency situations in which (usually) the same offender commits another offense based on the past experiences with that victim or location (see also boost explanation)
executive clemency whenthe state governor, either alone or in consultation with a board or panel, commutes or reduces the original court-imposed sentence to a lesser punishment
ex post facto law a law passed after the fact, or after the event took place
false negatives instances in which something is predicted not to occur or is reported notto occur when in reality it does occur
false positives instances in which something is predicted to occur or is reported to occur when in reality it does not occur
false zeroes the discrepancy between media and official reports of hate crimes due to the reporting of zero hate crimes for jurisdictions that do not participate in the reporting process
family group conferencing (FGC) the inclusion of family members, close friends, and other support groups of the victim and offender in restorative conferences
fatality review teams teams thatdissect cases involving domestic violence homicides and suicides; they study domestic violence deaths and near-fatal incidents in an effort to learn about the underlying dynamics and to improve formal responses
fear “an emotional response of dread or anxiety to crime or symbols that a person associates with crime” (Ferraro, 1995)
fear of crime fear of being a victim of crime; consists of two parts: (1) the actual odds of being victimized, and (2) the subjective or perceived risk of victimization
Federal Identity Theft and Assumption Deterrence Act a1998 act that legally defined identity theft for the first time
flag explanation see risk heterogeneity
forensic examination the gathering of evidence from a crime in such a way to assure its admissibility in legal proceedings
forfeiture-by-wrongdoing doctrine the doctrine by which out-of-court statements are permissible when the victim is not available as long as they involve threats or injuries to the victim and those statements are trustworthy
forward record check amethod to assess accuracy/truthfulness of victimization responses; after asking respondents in a victim survey whether they had contacted the police about the incident, the researchers comb police records for a written case report
fraud “an act in which attempts are made to deceive with promises of goods, services, or financial benefits that do not exist, were never intended to be provided, or were misrepresented” (Office for Victims of Crime)
full enforcement whenthe police arrest every violator for every illegal act whenever possible
functional responsibility aterm used by Schafer to discuss the responsibility of some victims in their victimization
gemeinschaft societies rural and agrarian communities where most people are self-sufficient, know everyone on a close personal level, and families handle transgressions
general duty clause “Each employer shall furnish to each of his employees employment and a place of employment which are free from recognized hazards that are causing or are likely to cause death or serious physical harm to his employees” (29 U.S.C. 645(a)(1))
general strain theory a theory that suggests that strain can come from several sources; these are: (1) the inability to achieve the social goals, as outlined above, (2) the removal of desired or valued stimuli (such as losing one’s home or job), and (3) being faced with negative stimuli
general victimology a term used by Mendelsohn to assure victimology of its independence from criminology
gesellschaft societies large urban and industrialized communities where people rely on one another, are depersonalized, and a formal justice system handles transgressions
golden hour the time period in which seriously injured people need medical attention if they are to survive
Good Samaritan provisions theidea that a person who is hurt or killed during an attempt to prevent a crime from taking place or while attempting to capture a suspected criminal is entitled to compensation
gray-area event a victimization that does not conform to the usual common stereotype
grief process thefour-stage process of(1) shock and denial, (2) anger, (3) isolation, and (4) acceptance/recovery
hangman’s noose the manner in which a rope is coiled and tied prior to executing a person via hanging
hate crime “an act committed or attempted by one person or group against another—or that person’s property—that in any way constitutes an expression of hatred toward the victim based on his or her personal characteristics” (Bondi, 2012)
healing circles see sentencing circles
hierarchy rule a rule thatdictates that only one offense (typically the most serious offense) is recorded in the UCR when multiple offenses occur at the same time
homicide survivor patterns five survival patterns for relatives of homicides that correspond to (1) the alcohol- or other drug-related murder, (2) the domestic violence homicide, (3) the gang-related murder, (4) the isolated sudden murder, and (5) the serial murder
hostile environment harassmentby which the victim, intentionally or unintentionally, is made to feel uncomfortable; may be as subtle as displaying calendars of naked people at work, telling crude sexual jokes, touching a person, or commenting about how “sexy” a person looks in certain clothing
hot spots “small places in which the occurrence of crime is so frequent that it is highly predictable”(Sherman, 1995: 36)
household respondent anindividual who relays information to a surveyor about crimes committed against all members of his or her household
identity theft “refers to an instance in which an individual’s personal information is used by another to facilitate an act of fraud” (McNally & Newman, 2008)
impact stage the initial response to an event (such as sexual assault) that includes emotions such as shock and distress
in camera out of public earshot
incidence data the total number of offenses that are reported during the same period
Index, or Part I, Offenses theeight most serious crimes as determined by the UCR; consists of four personal offenses and four property offenses
Index of Southernness a measure of the population to assess the Southern origins of the population; used in studies of subcultural violence
infanticide child homicide, the killing of children
intangible costs pain and suffering, psychological impacts and reduced quality of life
internal validity the question of whether the treatment caused the outcome or whether outside influences contaminated the experiment
intimate femicide cases involving men who murder their wives or female lovers
intimate partner violence physical episodes involving current or former spouses, boyfriends, and girlfriends
investment opportunities schemes the manipulation of stocks or securities to raise or lower their value
larceny/theft “the unlawful taking, carrying, leading or riding away of property from the possession or constructive possession of another” (FBI)
learned helplessness whenpeople (e.g., a battered woman) believe they cannot influence or control what is about to happen to them
legislative immunity immunity from prosecution granted by the state legislature
lex talionis theprinciple of an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth; that is, punishment commensurate with the harm inflicted
life expectancy the number of years that the average person is expected to live
macro-level effecta change in some group or organizational characteristic
maintenance stagewhen aperson continues newly learned behavior and does not succumb or give in to pressures to revert back to the old destructive behavior
mala in setotally unacceptable behavior, in and of itself
mandatory arrest policies policies by whichpolice officers must make an arrest whenever feasible
masochism a desire to suffer
mass-marketing fraud “fraud schemes that use mass-communications media—including telephones, the Internet, mass mailings, television, radio, and even personal contact—to contact, solicit, and obtain money, funds, or other items of value from multiple victims in one or more jurisdictions" (FBI)
matricide when a child kills his or her mother
memory decay when respondents were victimized during the survey time frame, but forgot the event and did not provide the correct answer to the question
micro-level effect a changeevident in an individual, such as being more satisfied with the criminal justice system if a person received compensation
Milwaukee Victim/Witness Project a project undertaken to assess the difficulties stemming from the criminal episode
misdemeanor rule the rule by whichan officer can make a warrantless arrestonly if the transgression has taken place in his or her presence
mitigating circumstances factors that make the crime somewhat more understandable or excusable
modeling perhaps the simplest form of learning theory; suggests that people learn by copying or imitating the behavior of others
monetary-community restitution payment by the offender to the community rather than to the actual victim
monetary-victim restitution when the offender makes direct monetary repayment to the victim for the actual amount of harm or losses incurred
moral panic when a social problem is considered to be so pervasive and damaging that it threatens core values and beliefs
most guilty victim one of the types in Mendelsohn’s typology of victims; onewho entered the situation as the offender and, because of circumstances beyond his or her control, ended up as the victim
motor vehicle theft “the theft or attempted theft of a motor vehicle.” (FBI)
mover-stayer problem in a panel design victimization survey of addresses, if the original survey participants vacate the premises and somebody else moves in, the results are not bounded or comparable
National College Women Sexual Victimization (NCWSV) Study amajor national survey of college women completed in 1996 probing sexual assault