Content (Syllabus outline)
- Scope of victimology:
o the development of victim throughout history,
o the reemergence of the victim (von Hentig, Mendelsohn and Schafer),
o studies on victim precipitation (Wolfgang and Amir),
o independence of victimology as a science,
o critical victimology,
o the victim movements.
- Measuring of victimization:
o official police statistics,
o victimization surveys (ICVS, NCS, city surveys),
o reasons for reporting and not reporting crimes.
- Property crime and victimization:
o types of property victimization,
o trends of victimisation of property crime,
o the consequences of property crime,
o other property crimes.
- Personal crime and victimization:
o personal crime and victimization,
o the consequences of personal crime,
o criminological theories.
- Consequences of victimisation:
o the consequences of primary victimization,
o the consequences of secondary victimization,
o helping victims of crime.
- Resitution to victims:
o types of restitution (to victims and community),
o the effectiveness and impact of restitution,
o problems and concerns with restitution,
o victim compensation and its effectiveness.
- Restorative justice:
o the development of restorative justice,
o theoretical basis of restorative justice,
o types of restorative justice (mediation, inclusion of all participants, proper sanctioning),
o the impact of restorative justice,
o problems and concerns with restorative justice.
- Sexual violence and victimization:
o definition of rape,
o spousal rape,
o date or acquintance rape,
o the extent of rape victimis - ICVS,
o criminological theories on rapists,
o the consequence of rape.
- Intimate partner violence:
o history and the extent of intimate partner violence,
o criminological theories of intimate partner violence,
o police intervention,
o assistance to victims of violence.
- Child maltreatment:
o the beginning of defining of child maltreatment,
o criminological theories on offenders of child maltreatment,
o assistance to child victims,
o the extent of child maltreatment.
- Crime and elderly:
o the rise of interest in the crime against elderly,
o types of crime against elderly,
o fear of crime and vicarious victimization,
o characteristics of victims and offenders,
o institutional maltreatment of elderly,
o criminological theories of elder maltreatment,
o responding to elder maltreatment.
- Victimization at work and school:
o defining workplace victimization,
o types or workplace victimization,
o explanations and causes of workplace victimization,
o prevention of workplace victimization,
o victimization in junior and highschool,
o explanations and causes of school victimization,
o responses to victimization,
o sexual harrasment.
- Victim rights:
o legal framework of victim’s rights.
Learning and teaching methods
- The course will consist of lectures, discussions, coursework, case studies, individual and group projects, and individual consultations with the professor. Coursework consists of two parts:
o case study analysis,
o study visits to institutions which are actively engaged with victims of crime and victimization (police, non-governmental organisations).
Readings
- Doerner, W. G. in Lab, S. P. (2012). Victimology. Elsevier, Anderson Publishing.
- Erčulj, V. in Meško, G. (2022). Fear of crime – Measurement of fear of ordinary crimes and fear of crimes in cyberspace. Revija za krimminalistiko in kriminologijo, 73(4), 308 – 318.
- Meško, G., Cockcroft, T., Crawford, A. in Lemaitre, A. (ur.) (2009). Crime, media and fear of crime. Fakulteta za varnostne vede.
- Meško, G., Sárik, E. in Getoš, A.-M. (ur.) (2020). Mapping the victimological landscape of the Balkans: A regional study on victimology and victim protection with a critical analysis of current victim policies. Duncker & Humblot.
