Victimology

Victimology is a peculiar area of study that concerns victims of crime and the psychological effects that the experience they had on them. It is a relevant field that can be used to acquire knowledge on how to deal with victims of crime, how to address their psychological concerns and also how to incorporate them back in the society even after their hurting experiences (Ronel & Toren, 2012). Victimology can be enriched in many ways if global studies such as experiences of prisoners of war, government repression, political dissidents, among others. By expanding the scope of the studies a greater understanding of crime and its psychological impact on the victims would be made thereby making victimology a more diverse and informed field.

In most cases, victimology studies only concentrate on the experiences of the victims. There is however a very little understanding of the motivations of the criminals that motivated them to carry out the particular crimes and whether they expected the same outcomes that are displayed by the victims in the end. Victimology studies, for instance, could highlight the tortures of prisoners of war like those from the World War II (Engdahl, 2012). By examining their answer the expectations of the criminals concerning the impending emotional reactions on the victims would be well understood. 

Lastly, victimology should offer restorative justice. There it is necessary to listen to government dissidents and evaluate what their thoughts regarding the handling of crimes by the government are. Such would give a more critical view of whether criminals look forward to hurting the government in the long run by affecting the victims psychologically (Doak, 2015). Restorative justice would also enhance the healing process of the victims as it would also bring out a sense of satisfaction to the victims.  Using such approaches, a global view of victimology would be realized thereby enriching its scope.

References

Doak, J. (2015). Enriching trial justice for crime victims in common law systems: lessons from transitional environments. International Review of Victimology, 21(2), 139-160.

Engdahl, B.  (2012). Serving America’s former prisoners of war: Getting it “right.”

Ronel, N., & Toren, Y. A. T. (2012). Positive victimology: An innovation or “more of the same”?. Temida, 15(2), 171-180.