Crime Victims and their Social Network: A Field Study on the Cognitive Effects of Victimisation, Attributional Responses and the Victim-Blaming Model
| Date | 01 January 1995 |
| Author | Frans Willem Winkel,Adriaan Denkers |
| Published date | 01 January 1995 |
| DOI | 10.1177/026975809500300404 |
International
Review
ofVictimology,
1995,
Vol.
3,
pp.
309-322
0269-7580/95 $10
©
1995
A B Academic
Publishers-
Printed
in
Great Britain
CRIME
VICTIMS
AND
THEIR
SOCIAL
NETWORK:
A
FIELD
STUDY
ON
THE
COGNITIVE
EFFECTS
OF
VICTIMISATION,
ATTRIBUTIONAL
RESPONSES
AND
THE
VICTIM-BLAMING
MODEL
FRANS
WILLEM
WINKEL
and
ADRIAAN
DENKERS
Department
of
Social
Psychology,
Vrije
Universiteit
Amsterdam,
De
Boelelaan
1081,
108/HV
Amsterdam,
The
Netherlands
ABSTRACT
A
field
study
is
reported focusing
on
the
cognitive effects of criminal victimisation,
on
the types
of responses victims encounter
in
their social network,
and
on
the
validity of the 'victim blaming
model'. Data reveal that victimisations have a negative impact
on
the perceived benevolence of the
world.
Perceptions of self control
and
control over outcomes
are
reduced, and victims consider
themselves
less
as
persons having luck
in
life. These cognitive effects appear
to
stretch out beyond
those
directly involved. Results generally
do
not support
the
theoretically dominant position
in
the
victimologicalliterature on 'blaming the victim'. Empathical responses and external attributions
from
the
social network are much
more
common than internal responses to victimisation. Moreover,
internal attributions
from
the
social network appear to
work
more
positively
on
the
wellbeing
of
victims
than
external attributions. These outcomes
-which
are
in
line with the Janoff-Bulman
model-
are
clearly
in
contrast
to
the 'victim blaming model'.
Some
implications for
future
studies
are
discussed.
INTRODUCTION
Crime victims may suffer psychological distress. Over the last decade this notion
was extensively documented in empirical studies done by social and clinical
psychologists (Frieze
eta/.,
1987). However, the cognitive effects
of
victimis-
ation were relatively ignored (Winkel, 1990, 1991; Winkel and Vrij, 1993). A
proper framework for analysing such effects was offered by Janoff-Bulman
(1985, 1989; Janoff-Bulman and Frieze, 1983; Janoff-Bulman and Wortman,
1977). She distinguished three categories
of
rather implicit, basic assumptions
about the world and the self, which together comprise the individual's 'cognitive
baggage', namely:
(
1)
about the benevolence
of
the world (of the impersonal world, and
of
people);
* This study
was
financially supported
by
a grant
from
the Centrale Directie Wetenschapsbeleid
en
-Ontwikkeling
(CDWO)
of
the
Netherlands Ministry of Justice.
We
are
indebted
to
Drs
Daniel
H.J.
Wigboldus
for
his assistance
in
data analyses.
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