10.3.4
Victimology
Positivist Victimology
Positivist Victimology
Positivist victimology states that there are characteristics which make someone more likely to be a victim.
Victimisation
Victimisation
- Positivist victimology states that there are characteristics which make someone more likely to be a victim.
- This approach focuses on interpersonal crimes of violence and aims to identify people who have contributed to their own victimisation.
Hans Von Hentig
Hans Von Hentig
- Positivist victimologists discuss the idea of victim proneness.
- Hans Von Hentig argues that there are 13 characteristics which make someone more likely to be a victim of crime.
13 characteristics
13 characteristics
- Young.
- Female.
- Old.
- Immigrants.
- Depressed.
- Mental illness.
- The acquisitive.
13 characteristics cont.
13 characteristics cont.
- Dull normal.
- Minorities.
- Lonesome.
- Heartbroken.
- Tormentor.
- The blocked/The fighter.
Victim precipitation
Victim precipitation
- They also discuss victim precipitation.
- Wolfgang looked at murders in the USA.
- He found that 26% of 588 homicides in Philadelphia involved victim precipitation.
- This means that the victim triggered the events leading to the murder.
Critical Victimology
Critical Victimology
Critical victimologists argue that the proletariat are victims of both the exploitation by the bourgeoisie and the state.
‘Structural powerlessness’
‘Structural powerlessness’
- Critical victimologists argue that the proletariat are victims of both the exploitation by the bourgeoisie and the state.
- Mawby and Walklate argue that victimisation is a form of ‘structural powerlessness’.
The state
The state
- The state has power to define who they decide is a victim and as a result the state labels some people as victims, but not others.
- E.g. before 1991 it was legal to rape your wife, therefore a wife was not a victim.
Theories
Theories
- This type of victimology is dominated by theories such as Marxists, feminists and labelling theorists.
Health and safety
Health and safety
- Marxists, Tombs and Whyte argue employers tend to manipulate ‘safety crimes’ where injured workers are often blamed for their actions instead of the company taking responsibility for their negligence of health and safety procedure.
- This is referred to as the ‘hierarchy of victimisation’.
1Theory & Methods
1.1Sociological Theories
1.2Sociological Methods
2Education with Methods in Context
2.1Role & Function of the Education System
2.2Educational Achievement
2.3Relationships & Processes Within Schools
3Option 1: Culture & Identity
3.1Conceptions of Culture
3.2Identity & Socialisation
3.3Social Identity
3.4Production, Consumption & Globalisation
4Option 1: Families & Households
4.1Families & Households
4.2Changing Patterns
4.3The Symmetrical Family
4.4Children & Childhood
5Option 1: Health
5.1Social Constructions
5.2Social Distribution of Healthcare
5.3Provision & Access to Healthcare
5.4Mental Health
6Option 1: Work, Poverty & Welfare
6.1Poverty & Wealth
7Option 2: Beliefs in Society
7.1Ideology, Science & Religion
7.2Religious Movements
7.3Society & Religion
8Option 2: Global Development
8.1Development, Underdevelopment & Global Inequality
8.2Globalisation & Global Organisations
8.3Aid, Trade, Industrialisation, Urbanisation
9Option 2: The Media
9.1Contemporary Media
9.2Media Representations
10Crime & Deviance
10.1Crime & Society
10.2Social Distribution of Crime
Jump to other topics
1Theory & Methods
1.1Sociological Theories
1.2Sociological Methods
2Education with Methods in Context
2.1Role & Function of the Education System
2.2Educational Achievement
2.3Relationships & Processes Within Schools
3Option 1: Culture & Identity
3.1Conceptions of Culture
3.2Identity & Socialisation
3.3Social Identity
3.4Production, Consumption & Globalisation
4Option 1: Families & Households
4.1Families & Households
4.2Changing Patterns
4.3The Symmetrical Family
4.4Children & Childhood
5Option 1: Health
5.1Social Constructions
5.2Social Distribution of Healthcare
5.3Provision & Access to Healthcare
5.4Mental Health
6Option 1: Work, Poverty & Welfare
6.1Poverty & Wealth
7Option 2: Beliefs in Society
7.1Ideology, Science & Religion
7.2Religious Movements
7.3Society & Religion
8Option 2: Global Development
8.1Development, Underdevelopment & Global Inequality
8.2Globalisation & Global Organisations
8.3Aid, Trade, Industrialisation, Urbanisation
9Option 2: The Media
9.1Contemporary Media
9.2Media Representations
10Crime & Deviance
10.1Crime & Society
10.2Social Distribution of Crime
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