Criminal Victimization in Today's World

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Criminologists have traditionally focused, albeit almost exclusively, on the perpetrators of crime, and rightfully so; however, by focusing their collective attention on the perpetrators, researchers have overlooked how crime directly and indirectly impacts the victims, their families, the communities in which they reside, and society at large. Crime has a ripple effect and therefore, it is not isolated to just the perpetrator and victim. By redirecting our attention to criminal victimization, we can assist criminal justice practitioners, researchers, and policymakers in broadening our understanding of criminal victimization, and in response, can aid in determining the best course of action to control, minimize, and prevent crime.

The uncertainty that follows whenever we leave the safety and security of our homes seems completely different from that experienced in past decades, when I was child. It was a time when children would play freely and bike to their friends’ homes with little to no adult supervision. We would stay out until the streetlights came on or our parents yelled for us to come home for dinner. No cell phones, no tracking devices, and very few warnings by our parents as to what to do and what not to do. Times have surely changed.

Places that were once considered safe havens for children and adults are no perceived in the same way. These "soft targets" are venues open to the public that often have easy access, few security restrictions, and relaxed rules: schools, parks, university campuses, movie theaters, churches, malls. They are the places where large numbers of individuals, young and old, congregate for education, recreation, and work and that have sadly become targets of mass shootings, hate crimes, and terrorism.

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The criminal justice system has repeatedly shown that it alone cannot effectively, or successfully, combat these crimes without the assistance of, and partnerships with, governmental, non-governmental, for-profit, and nonprofit organizations. Each of us can play an integral role in combatting crime on a small-scale as well as on a large-scale, but it requires a multidisciplinary, large-scale approach. The Department of Homeland Security’s slogan in response to the aftermath of 9/11, “if you see something, say something,” can be quite powerful because it empowers the everyday citizen to come forward if they witness, hear, or partake in something that could lead to significant destruction, injuries, and death.

As a social scientist, I tend to rely on my 30-plus years of experience in the field and in higher education. As an educator, I apply criminological theories to help others in further understanding the manifestations of crime, criminals, and victims. Criminology, in short, is the study of crime, the causes of crime, and the impact of crime. Criminology seeks to understand criminal motives, patterns, and trends. Criminology, which hails from many disciplines, attempts to better understand what motivates the criminal to act in a criminal manner. In other words, why do some people conform and obey laws and others reject and disobey laws? This is where theories come into play. Many criminologists seek out answers as to what happened and why it happened in order to evaluate the effectiveness of laws, policies, and programs in curtailing crime. Desistance is the end goal. Criminologists collect quantitative and qualitative information, analyze the findings, and make scientific assertions based on those findings. Criminological theories, therefore, provide explanatory power in understanding crime and criminal behavior.

Routine Activities Theory

One of my favorite theories is an oldie but a goodie – Routine Activities Theory (RAT). RAT was initially introduced by researchers Cohen and Felson. The theory professes that the likelihood of criminal victimization depends on three essential requisites for a crime to occur—a motivated offender, a suitable victim, and the absence of capable guardians. Some individuals are therefore are at a higher risk for victimization, particularly when there is no guardian present. Therefore, victimization can be understood in terms of the normal everyday activities and characteristics of potential victims that either increase or inhibit the likelihood of being victimized.

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Situational Crime Prevention Theory

Situational Crime Prevention Theory is essentially an outgrowth of rational choice theory, routine activity theory, and crime pattern theory. Rational choice theory suggests that at the core of every crime, a rational decision is made in which the risks and benefits of committing the crime are considered. In this scenario, the offender will focus his or her attention on a suitable target, particularly in the absence of effective crime control measures that are not in place. Routine activity theory, as mentioned earlier, is contingent upon a motivated offender, a suitable victim, and the absence of a capable guardian. Therefore, the intended goal of crime prevention techniques is to decrease the number of suitable victims and increase the presence of crime control measures and guardians at all times. Crime pattern theory is a way of explaining why crime occurs in certain areas based on at-risk factors such as poverty, gang infestation, high unemployment, etc.

Situational crime prevention provides the framework for understanding victimization and in response, devises crime control and prevention strategies. Situational crime prevention, as a framework for intervention, seeks to reduce the number of crime events by limiting the opportunities for crime to occur. More specifically, situational crime prevention assesses the various opportunities that specific situations offer for crime to occur. The Center for Problem-Oriented Policing has identified five primary ways in which such situations can be modified to prevent and control crime. They include:

1. Increasing the effort, the offender must make to carry out the crime.
2. Increasing the risks, the offenders must face in completing the crime.
3. Reducing the rewards or benefits the offender expects to obtain from the crime.
4. Removing excuses that offenders may use to “rationalize” or justify their actions.
5. Reducing or avoiding provocations that may tempt or incite offenders into criminal acts.

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Additionally, the Center for Problem-Oriented Policing summarized 10 principles of crime opportunity that deserve attention.

1. Opportunities play a role in causing all crime, not only common property crime.
2. Crime opportunities are highly specific. Crime opportunity theory helps sort out these differences so responses can be appropriately tailored.
3. Crime opportunities are concentrated in time and space, which means that crime shifts greatly by the hour and day of the week, reflecting the opportunities to carry it out.
4. Crime opportunities depend on everyday movements of activity meaning that offenders and targets (victims) shift according to routine activities (e.g. work, school, leisure).
5. One crime produces the opportunities for another.
6. Some products offer more tempting crime opportunities.
7. Social and technological changes produce new crime opportunities.
8. Crime can be prevented by reducing opportunities – The opportunity reducing methods of situational crime prevention can be applied to all aspects of everyday life, but they must be tailored to specific situations.
9. Reducing opportunities does not usually displace crime.
10. Focused opportunity reduction can produce wider declines in crime.

Situational crime prevention strategies have attempted to reduce the number of crime events by limiting the opportunities for crime to occur. The focus of which has been on the importance of either analyzing crime events or the environments in which these crimes occur. As suggested, this approach to controlling and preventing crime can be quite effective, especially when implemented within the private, public, and nonprofit sectors. While there has been a considerable amount of scrutiny in regard to crime displacement to other potential victims or targets, the situational crime prevention approach can be improved to address the issue of crime displacement, particularly as it relates to enhancing the security and safety of soft targets.