NCJ Number
74255
Date Published
1980
Length
12 pages
Annotation
Six categories of victim-oriented programs are identified and examined to assess the degree to which these programs contribute to the victim's role as an agent of social control.
Abstract
Victim programs vary in relation to how they operationally define victims as service recipients, and these definitions follow from the type of organization delivering the services. Even in programs designed to provide services for persons identified as victims, there is a tendency to conceive of victims in a manner that is peculiar to the social function of the organization providing the services. Programs can be compared on the basis of three major attributes: (1) identification of the major problem, (2) goals of the program, and (3) type of intervention characteristic of the program. A table provides a display of the six program categories and the goals, types of intervention, and perceived problems related to each characteristic. The programs categorized are victim compensation, offender restitution, victim-witness, crisis intervention, victim advocacy, and neighborhood justice. A second table illustrates the degree to which each of the six categories of victim service programs functions in support of each aspect of the victim's role as an agent of social control. The tables demonstrate that social control functions of victims are more likely to be performed if victim service programs are in closed conformity with the interests of individual victims. Although most programs entail sponsorship or direction by the State, the degree of State involvement seems to be inversely related to the degree with which victims perform social control functions. This relationship suggests the need for reassessment of the ultimate purpose of service programs for victims, as well as the need for systematic monitoring and assessment of their operations. Eleven notes and six suggested readings are appended.