RESEARCH STARTER

Victimization

Victimization refers to the experience of individuals who suffer harm or loss due to various events, which can be categorized into three primary sources: natural events, non-criminal human actions, and criminal acts. Natural victimization includes incidents caused by severe weather, such as hurricanes and earthquakes, or other natural disasters that result in injury or property damage. Non-criminal sources can involve accidents or the impacts of war, where innocent individuals may be affected. The most discussed form of victimization is criminal activity, which encompasses acts that intentionally inflict harm, such as theft, assault, or online crimes like identity theft and cyberbullying.

The study of victimization also addresses the psychological and emotional impacts on victims, as well as their families and communities, who may experience secondary victimization. The responses to victimization can vary, with individuals often experiencing a range of emotions and coping mechanisms following an incident. Recovery from victimization can be a lengthy process, characterized by stages of grief and the need for support, which may include counseling for emotional healing and regaining a sense of control over one’s life. Overall, understanding victimization is crucial for fostering awareness and developing strategies for support and prevention across diverse contexts.

Full Article

  • TYPE OF PSYCHOLOGY: Clinical; Counseling; Forensic; Psychopathology; Psychotherapy; Social

Victimization is a universal human experience. While many people associate the term exclusively with criminal acts such as robbery or assault, victimization occurs in a much broader scope with different forms, types, levels, and degrees; however, the central issue is loss—physical, personal, material, or psychological. All individuals process victimization differently. Two people may experience similar events but respond differently depending on their background, resilience, support systems, and prior experiences.

Sources of victimization

The primary types or sources of victimization include natural, human-caused (non-criminal), or criminal acts. Nature victimizations include extreme weather (floods, wildfires, hurricanes, tornadoes, and other severe storms), geological events (earthquakes, volcanoes, mudslides and landslides, and sinkholes), and environmental crises (droughts and climate-related displacement)

Humans are also a major source of victimization. Non-criminal human victimization examples include accidents like car crashes, medical errors or negligence, or war. Victimization through criminal acts includes myriad behaviors, from cybercrime to homicide.

Crime

The victimization that has received the greatest focus and study is crime. This is the illegal act of inflicting pain, death, or loss of property on another. Beyond the traditional perceptions of crime are harmful acts that use technology, as in identity theft, cyberstalking, or cyberbullying.

Researcher, professor, and author Andrew Karmen described the study of victimization in the 2001 edition of his book Crime Victims: An Introduction to Victimology.

The scientific study of victimization, including the relationships between victims and offenders, the interactions between victims and the criminal justice system—that is, the police and courts, and corrections officials—and the connections between victims and other societal groups and institutions, such as the media, businesses, and social movements. (2001, p. 9)

Karmen's definition limits victimization to acts of crime and focuses on the dynamics and actors involved in the act.

The early study of crime victimization began in the 1940s, with foundational work by criminologists Hans Von Hentig and Benjamin Mendelsohn, who are widely regarded as pioneers in the field. In the same decade, Frederick Wertham, an American psychiatrist, , is often credited with using the term victimology (Fattah, 2000; Karmen, 2001) to describe the psychological and social study of victims. With these early foundations of understanding, the study of crime victimization began.

Other studies of crime victimization offered explanations that described other contributions of location and opportunity. Hindelang, Gottfredson, and Garofalo (1978) developed the Lifestyle-Exposure Theory, which suggests that a person’s daily routines and social interactions can increase their likelihood of encountering potential offenders. Cohen and Felson’s Routine Activity Theory (1979) proposed the Routine Activity Theory which suggested at least three necessary conditions that must be present for a crime victimization to occur: a motivated offender, an available target, and the absence of a competent guardian.

Victimizations

Building on the three key elements of the Routine Activity Theory described by Cohen and Felson, different types of victimization may be described using a similar framework, extending this research beyond criminal acts. Generally, victimization of any type involves a vulnerable individual or group, a harmful source or triggering event, and insufficient protection, preparation, or support to prevent or mitigate the impact. These general characteristics move beyond intent and consider the context, opportunity, and systemic vulnerabilities that facilitate victimization in natural disasters, interpersonal relationships, institutional settings, digital spaces, and more.

Victims

The individual who experiences the trauma firsthand is called the primary victim, but victimization often impacts more than just those directly harmed by an event or act. Family members, close friends, bystanders, and even responders or caregivers may experience emotional, psychological, or physical consequences. Like the primary victim, secondary victims may have similar responses to the victimization—anxiety, grief, helplessness, or post-traumatic stress.

Victimizations by Nature

While they are not intentional acts of harm, natural disasters—floods, wildfires, thunderstorms, earthquakes, droughts, hurricanes, sandstorms, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions, and landslides—are a significant source of victimization. Losses resulting from natural disasters can be material (property, belongings), physical (injury or death), emotional (grief, anxiety), and social (loss of community, displacement).

The degree of harm may depend on physical location and the structural integrity of the environment a person is in at the time of the event; those in poorly constructed homes or flood-prone areas face greater risks than those in reinforced shelters or areas with early warning systems. Vulnerability to natural disasters also depends on socioeconomic status, access to emergency services, and the level of community support.

Human-Caused Victimization: Crime and Technology

This is best described as a crime. Strangers, acquaintances, or family members may commit interpersonal crimes, such as property theft, physical or sexual assault, domestic violence, harassment, or homicide. Technology is increasingly used in the perpetration of victimizing others. This includes using social media to stalk, bully, or harass someone online; hacking into another’s computer, phishing, or stealing personal information; revenge porn (non-consensual image sharing), data breaches, and doxxing (publicly sharing private information about another person online without consent) also victimize individuals.

The Victimization Experience

Victimization begins with a threatening or overwhelming event; depending on the individual's previous experiences and coping capacity, their nervous system responds with the fight, flight, or freeze response. The freeze response, often overlooked, can manifest as a sense of paralysis or dissociation during the event—akin to a deer frozen in the headlights. This is commonly reported by survivors when an event first occurs.

Sometimes, survivors experience dissociation as the mind distances itself from the physical or emotional pain of the moment, which can result in fragmented or missing memories of the event. This is a protective neurological response, not a reflection of credibility or strength. This behavior can be emotionally and physically draining on the individual, but it also allows the body to continue on in times of debilitating emotional distress. However, suppressed memories predispose an individual to night terrors, heightened anxiety, and various flashbacks of the event and may continue until the event can be processed. Research shows that brief cognitive interventions, such as visually engaging tasks (e.g., Tetris), may significantly reduce traumatic flashbacks, and AI-assisted therapies are being developed to expand access to trauma care.

Recovery

Recovery varies in length depending on the individual, the type of victimization, and the extent of the damage. For example, consider a man who came home from work to discover his house was burglarized—as he approached his front door, he noticed it was open but assumed he had not securely closed it when he left. Upon entering, he noticed the open patio door and an orange drink splashed on the walls. After a few moments, he realized he had been robbed and vandalized. For weeks after that experience, he would look to see if the front door was open when he turned the corner to his house. Research indicates that while a majority of individuals (around 70%) experience at least one traumatic event in their lifetime, only a smaller proportion develop post-traumatic stress disorder (about 3–4%) or complex PTSD (approximately 1–8%).

As with any loss, a person may follow a grief process. Psychologist Elisabeth Kübler-Ross originally outlined five stages of grief—denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance—in her book On Death and Dying (1969), which are now understood as non-linear and fluid. The first stage is denial. As the man described above did not acknowledge the burglary at first, he rationalized other possibilities. The second is anger, such as “Why me?” Followed by the third stage of bargaining, playing the “What if game.” The reality begins to set in, and depression, the fourth stage, occurs. Finally, with time, personal effort, and sometimes professional help comes acceptance. Survivors may revisit different stages multiple times, or skip some entirely. The key is that these emotional responses are valid and natural parts of the healing journey.

Support from a trauma-informed mental health professional experienced in working with trauma survivors can help people regain a sense of agency and control. Guidelines from the American Psychological Association emphasize personalized, evidence-based treatment approaches and recognize complex trauma (CPTSD) as distinct, focusing on broader recovery outcomes beyond symptom reduction.

If dissociation has occurred and the memory has not been regained, it may be necessary to address this blocking. Caution needs to be applied in this endeavor. In these situations, hypnosis can be an aid, as it allows the therapist the opportunity to help control the emotional distance a victim experiences in this recovery. In addition, the hypnotherapist needs to be cautious so as not to implant a false memory.

As the victim recovers from this experience, their life begins to return to a resemblance of normalcy. Though changes may need to occur in their lifestyle, the victim begins to regain a sense of a locus of control of their life. A new normalcy occurs.


Bibliography

Brzozowska, Aleksandra, and Jakub Grabowski. "Hyperarousal, Dissociation, Emotion Dysregulation and Re-Experiencing—Towards Understanding Molecular Aspects of PTSD Symptoms." International Journal of Molecular Sciences, vol. 26, no. 11, 29 May 2025, art. no. 5216, doi.org/10.3390/ijms26115216. Accessed 27 Mar. 2026.

Cohen, Lawrence, and Marcus Felson. "Social Change and Crime Rate Trends: A Routine Activity Approach." American Sociological Review, vol. 44, no. 4, 1979, pp. 588-607, doi.org/10.2307/2094589. Accessed 27 Mar. 2026.

Fattah, E. A. “Victimology: Past, Present and Future.” Criminologie, vol. 33, no. 1, 2000, pp,17–46, doi.org/10.7202/004720ar. Accessed 28 Mar. 29, 2026.

Hindelang, Michael J., et al. Victims of Personal Crime: An Empirical Foundation for a Theory of Personal Victimization. Ballinger, 1978.

Karmen, Andrew. Crime Victims: An Introduction to Victimology. 10th ed., Wadsworth/Thomson Learning, 2020.

Kübler-Ross, Elisabeth. On Death and Dying. Scribner, 1969.

Libster, Naomi, et al. "Personal Victimization Experiences of Autistic and Non-Autistic Children." Molecular Autism, vol. 13, no. 51, 2022, doi.org/10.1186/s13229-022-00531-4. Accessed 27 Mar. 2026.

Pappas, Stephanie. "PTSD and Trauma: New APA Guidelines Highlight Evidence-Based Treatments." APA Monitor on Psychology, 1 July 2025, www.apa.org/monitor/2025/07-08/guidelines-treating-ptsd-trauma. Accessed 27 Mar. 2026.

Peel, Michael. “‘Tetris’‑Based Therapy Shown to Help PTSD Sufferers Relieve Symptoms.” Financial Times, 19 Feb. 2026, www.ft.com/content/e185a5ed-833e-416d-9a10-e0178754dde0. Accessed 27 Mar. 2026.

Full Article

  • TYPE OF PSYCHOLOGY: Clinical; Counseling; Forensic; Psychopathology; Psychotherapy; Social

Victimization is a universal human experience. While many people associate the term exclusively with criminal acts such as robbery or assault, victimization occurs in a much broader scope with different forms, types, levels, and degrees; however, the central issue is loss—physical, personal, material, or psychological. All individuals process victimization differently. Two people may experience similar events but respond differently depending on their background, resilience, support systems, and prior experiences.

Sources of victimization

The primary types or sources of victimization include natural, human-caused (non-criminal), or criminal acts. Nature victimizations include extreme weather (floods, wildfires, hurricanes, tornadoes, and other severe storms), geological events (earthquakes, volcanoes, mudslides and landslides, and sinkholes), and environmental crises (droughts and climate-related displacement)

Humans are also a major source of victimization. Non-criminal human victimization examples include accidents like car crashes, medical errors or negligence, or war. Victimization through criminal acts includes myriad behaviors, from cybercrime to homicide.

Crime

The victimization that has received the greatest focus and study is crime. This is the illegal act of inflicting pain, death, or loss of property on another. Beyond the traditional perceptions of crime are harmful acts that use technology, as in identity theft, cyberstalking, or cyberbullying.

Researcher, professor, and author Andrew Karmen described the study of victimization in the 2001 edition of his book Crime Victims: An Introduction to Victimology.

The scientific study of victimization, including the relationships between victims and offenders, the interactions between victims and the criminal justice system—that is, the police and courts, and corrections officials—and the connections between victims and other societal groups and institutions, such as the media, businesses, and social movements. (2001, p. 9)

Karmen's definition limits victimization to acts of crime and focuses on the dynamics and actors involved in the act.

The early study of crime victimization began in the 1940s, with foundational work by criminologists Hans Von Hentig and Benjamin Mendelsohn, who are widely regarded as pioneers in the field. In the same decade, Frederick Wertham, an American psychiatrist, , is often credited with using the term victimology (Fattah, 2000; Karmen, 2001) to describe the psychological and social study of victims. With these early foundations of understanding, the study of crime victimization began.

Other studies of crime victimization offered explanations that described other contributions of location and opportunity. Hindelang, Gottfredson, and Garofalo (1978) developed the Lifestyle-Exposure Theory, which suggests that a person’s daily routines and social interactions can increase their likelihood of encountering potential offenders. Cohen and Felson’s Routine Activity Theory (1979) proposed the Routine Activity Theory which suggested at least three necessary conditions that must be present for a crime victimization to occur: a motivated offender, an available target, and the absence of a competent guardian.

Victimizations

Building on the three key elements of the Routine Activity Theory described by Cohen and Felson, different types of victimization may be described using a similar framework, extending this research beyond criminal acts. Generally, victimization of any type involves a vulnerable individual or group, a harmful source or triggering event, and insufficient protection, preparation, or support to prevent or mitigate the impact. These general characteristics move beyond intent and consider the context, opportunity, and systemic vulnerabilities that facilitate victimization in natural disasters, interpersonal relationships, institutional settings, digital spaces, and more.

Victims

The individual who experiences the trauma firsthand is called the primary victim, but victimization often impacts more than just those directly harmed by an event or act. Family members, close friends, bystanders, and even responders or caregivers may experience emotional, psychological, or physical consequences. Like the primary victim, secondary victims may have similar responses to the victimization—anxiety, grief, helplessness, or post-traumatic stress.

Victimizations by Nature

While they are not intentional acts of harm, natural disasters—floods, wildfires, thunderstorms, earthquakes, droughts, hurricanes, sandstorms, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions, and landslides—are a significant source of victimization. Losses resulting from natural disasters can be material (property, belongings), physical (injury or death), emotional (grief, anxiety), and social (loss of community, displacement).

The degree of harm may depend on physical location and the structural integrity of the environment a person is in at the time of the event; those in poorly constructed homes or flood-prone areas face greater risks than those in reinforced shelters or areas with early warning systems. Vulnerability to natural disasters also depends on socioeconomic status, access to emergency services, and the level of community support.

Human-Caused Victimization: Crime and Technology

This is best described as a crime. Strangers, acquaintances, or family members may commit interpersonal crimes, such as property theft, physical or sexual assault, domestic violence, harassment, or homicide. Technology is increasingly used in the perpetration of victimizing others. This includes using social media to stalk, bully, or harass someone online; hacking into another’s computer, phishing, or stealing personal information; revenge porn (non-consensual image sharing), data breaches, and doxxing (publicly sharing private information about another person online without consent) also victimize individuals.

The Victimization Experience

Victimization begins with a threatening or overwhelming event; depending on the individual's previous experiences and coping capacity, their nervous system responds with the fight, flight, or freeze response. The freeze response, often overlooked, can manifest as a sense of paralysis or dissociation during the event—akin to a deer frozen in the headlights. This is commonly reported by survivors when an event first occurs.

Sometimes, survivors experience dissociation as the mind distances itself from the physical or emotional pain of the moment, which can result in fragmented or missing memories of the event. This is a protective neurological response, not a reflection of credibility or strength. This behavior can be emotionally and physically draining on the individual, but it also allows the body to continue on in times of debilitating emotional distress. However, suppressed memories predispose an individual to night terrors, heightened anxiety, and various flashbacks of the event and may continue until the event can be processed. Research shows that brief cognitive interventions, such as visually engaging tasks (e.g., Tetris), may significantly reduce traumatic flashbacks, and AI-assisted therapies are being developed to expand access to trauma care.

Recovery

Recovery varies in length depending on the individual, the type of victimization, and the extent of the damage. For example, consider a man who came home from work to discover his house was burglarized—as he approached his front door, he noticed it was open but assumed he had not securely closed it when he left. Upon entering, he noticed the open patio door and an orange drink splashed on the walls. After a few moments, he realized he had been robbed and vandalized. For weeks after that experience, he would look to see if the front door was open when he turned the corner to his house. Research indicates that while a majority of individuals (around 70%) experience at least one traumatic event in their lifetime, only a smaller proportion develop post-traumatic stress disorder (about 3–4%) or complex PTSD (approximately 1–8%).

As with any loss, a person may follow a grief process. Psychologist Elisabeth Kübler-Ross originally outlined five stages of grief—denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance—in her book On Death and Dying (1969), which are now understood as non-linear and fluid. The first stage is denial. As the man described above did not acknowledge the burglary at first, he rationalized other possibilities. The second is anger, such as “Why me?” Followed by the third stage of bargaining, playing the “What if game.” The reality begins to set in, and depression, the fourth stage, occurs. Finally, with time, personal effort, and sometimes professional help comes acceptance. Survivors may revisit different stages multiple times, or skip some entirely. The key is that these emotional responses are valid and natural parts of the healing journey.

Support from a trauma-informed mental health professional experienced in working with trauma survivors can help people regain a sense of agency and control. Guidelines from the American Psychological Association emphasize personalized, evidence-based treatment approaches and recognize complex trauma (CPTSD) as distinct, focusing on broader recovery outcomes beyond symptom reduction.

If dissociation has occurred and the memory has not been regained, it may be necessary to address this blocking. Caution needs to be applied in this endeavor. In these situations, hypnosis can be an aid, as it allows the therapist the opportunity to help control the emotional distance a victim experiences in this recovery. In addition, the hypnotherapist needs to be cautious so as not to implant a false memory.

As the victim recovers from this experience, their life begins to return to a resemblance of normalcy. Though changes may need to occur in their lifestyle, the victim begins to regain a sense of a locus of control of their life. A new normalcy occurs.


Bibliography

Brzozowska, Aleksandra, and Jakub Grabowski. "Hyperarousal, Dissociation, Emotion Dysregulation and Re-Experiencing—Towards Understanding Molecular Aspects of PTSD Symptoms." International Journal of Molecular Sciences, vol. 26, no. 11, 29 May 2025, art. no. 5216, doi.org/10.3390/ijms26115216. Accessed 27 Mar. 2026.

Cohen, Lawrence, and Marcus Felson. "Social Change and Crime Rate Trends: A Routine Activity Approach." American Sociological Review, vol. 44, no. 4, 1979, pp. 588-607, doi.org/10.2307/2094589. Accessed 27 Mar. 2026.

Fattah, E. A. “Victimology: Past, Present and Future.” Criminologie, vol. 33, no. 1, 2000, pp,17–46, doi.org/10.7202/004720ar. Accessed 28 Mar. 29, 2026.

Hindelang, Michael J., et al. Victims of Personal Crime: An Empirical Foundation for a Theory of Personal Victimization. Ballinger, 1978.

Karmen, Andrew. Crime Victims: An Introduction to Victimology. 10th ed., Wadsworth/Thomson Learning, 2020.

Kübler-Ross, Elisabeth. On Death and Dying. Scribner, 1969.

Libster, Naomi, et al. "Personal Victimization Experiences of Autistic and Non-Autistic Children." Molecular Autism, vol. 13, no. 51, 2022, doi.org/10.1186/s13229-022-00531-4. Accessed 27 Mar. 2026.

Pappas, Stephanie. "PTSD and Trauma: New APA Guidelines Highlight Evidence-Based Treatments." APA Monitor on Psychology, 1 July 2025, www.apa.org/monitor/2025/07-08/guidelines-treating-ptsd-trauma. Accessed 27 Mar. 2026.

Peel, Michael. “‘Tetris’‑Based Therapy Shown to Help PTSD Sufferers Relieve Symptoms.” Financial Times, 19 Feb. 2026, www.ft.com/content/e185a5ed-833e-416d-9a10-e0178754dde0. Accessed 27 Mar. 2026.

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