NCJ Number
206693
Journal
Psychology Crime & Law Volume: 9 Issue: 1 Dated: 2003 Pages: 87-95
Date Published
2003
Length
9 pages
Annotation
This Dutch study examined the impact of repeat victimization as a resilience or vulnerability factor for psychological distress, using a prospective design that included measures administered prior to the first victimization and measures following repeat victimization.
Abstract
The study used a dataset that was part of the Amsterdam Prospective and Longitudinal Study on the Psychological Impact of Criminal Victimization. Study participants consisted of 298 controls (no victimization reported), 275 victims of a single crime SV's (singular victims), and 29 RV's (repeat victims). Victimization involved both property and person-directed crimes. A panel of 5,218 subjects received questionnaires prior to any victimization. This panel was followed up over a 2.5-year period, during which criminal victimization was checked weekly. For those reporting a victimization, postvictimization questionnaires were administered. Controls, who did not report a victimization, were recruited from the panel on the basis of criteria that matched the victim sample on gender, age, degree of urbanization, and household composition. Victims and controls were followed up over a 10-month period. During this period, almost 10 percent of the victims reported a repeat victimization. On average, they experienced two more crimes. General psychological functioning was indexed by fear of crime and psychological well-being. Other variables measured were personal risk factors, social risk factors, and facts about the crime and its impact. Analyses found significant differences in both the personal risk and social risk profiles of RV's compared with SV's. Differences in personal profiles included the areas of perceptions of previctimization comparative vulnerability and prior life stress. Differences in social risk pertained to the level of social support. Repeat victimization within a short time after the previous victimization negatively influenced postvictimization psychological functioning, with this impact being only partly mediated by other risk factors. These findings suggest that the distinctive psychological impact of a repeat victimization on initial postvictimization distress warrants including repeat victimization on the checklist of criteria for police to use in referring crime victims to mental health services. 1 figure, 2 tables, 28 references, and appended sample items for a checklist for trauma risk