International Summaries: Behavior and Attitudes of Victims -- A National Study

• NCJ Number: 127875
• Author(s): R Zauberman; P Robert; C Perez-Diaz; R Levy
• Date Published: 1990
• Length: 4 pages
• Sale Source: National Institute of Justice/; NCJRS Photocopy Services
• Publication Format: Document
• Publication Type: Survey
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: NIJ/NCJRS international summary of "Les Victimes Comportement et Attitudes enquete nationale de victimization;" CESDIP, Paris, 1990; Deviance et controle social, No. 52, 2 volumes.

Annotation

A 2-phase statistical study gathered data from 11,156 men and women in France to identify 2,291 crime victims and to determine how the victims reacted to crimes and their attitudes toward their experiences.

Abstract

The data were gathered in 1987, first from the total sample and then through questionnaires given to victims of theft, burglary, assault, sexual assaults, domestic assault, consumer fraud, other business-related offenses, and labor law violations. The researchers also interviewed 1,716 victims in detail. The participants were all over age 15. Results revealed that only 2.6 percent of the total sample had experienced violent assaults; 1.3 percent, domestic violence; and 0.4 percent, sexual assault. In contrast, 6.3 percent had been burglary victims; 6.3 percent, consumer fraud; and 8.8 percent, theft. Results revealed that victims saw the criminal justice system as inadequate, believing the police to record most offenses as a matter of form. Only the victims who tried to settle the incident themselves reported a high level of satisfaction. A surprising finding was the lack of success of consumer organizations, which were found to be highly fragmented interest groups intent on influencing legislation and administrative decisions, but poorly equipped to deal with individual consumer problems. Findings indicated the importance of alternative services and private resources including insurance and security companies.