Towards a multifactorial framework of the Roma’s victimisation: Discrimination, risky situations, and acceptance of violence as correlates of physical assault and harassment
| Published date | 01 September 2024 |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1177/02697580241232436 |
| Author | Lorena Molnar,Julien Chopin,Yuji Z Hashimoto,Alexander T Vazsonyi |
| Date | 01 September 2024 |
https://doi.org/10.1177/02697580241232436
International Review of Victimology
2024, Vol. 30(3) 480 –502
© The Author(s) 2024
Article reuse guidelines:
sagepub.com/journals-permissions
DOI: 10.1177/02697580241232436
journals.sagepub.com/home/irv
Towards a multifactorial
framework of the Roma’s
victimisation: Discrimination,
risky situations, and
acceptance of violence as
correlates of physical assault
and harassment
Lorena Molnar
University of Lausanne, Switzerland
Julien Chopin
Simon Fraser University, Canada; Laval University, Canada
Yuji Z Hashimoto
University of Lausanne, Switzerland
Alexander T Vazsonyi
University of Kentucky, USA
Abstract
The European Roma population faces violence and discrimination, but the causes of their
victimisation are not well understood. This study used a multi-theoretical framework to analyse
data from a representative sample of 2,913 Roma surveyed in European Union Minorities and
Discrimination Survey II. The results showed that police stops perceived as ethnically motivated,
exposure to risky situations, and acceptance of violence when insulted predicted physical
victimisation and harassment. To reduce victimisation, recommendations include sensitising police
officers, diverse police patrols, crime-reduction measures in neighbourhoods, and education on
nonviolent communication. Further research is needed to understand other forms of victimisation
among the Roma. The study highlights the usefulness of testing multiple risk factors from different
criminological theories to address victimisation of the Roma ethnic minority.
Corresponding author:
Lorena Molnar, School of Criminal Sciences, University of Lausanne, Batochime, Office 6309, UNIL-Sorge, Lausanne
1015, Switzerland.
Email: lorena.molnar@unil.ch
1232436IRV0010.1177/02697580241232436International Review of VictimologyMolnar et al.
research-article2024
Article
Molnar et al. 481
Keywords
Victimisation, ethnicity, discrimination, police stops, minorities
Introduction
The victimisation of hard-to-reach vulnerable groups such as ethnic minorities is an understudied
topic. Despite the fact that these groups have high risks of being subjected to both hate-motivated
crimes and crimes not motivated by hate, they are less likely to seek victim assistance (Briones-
Vozmediano et al., 2021; European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, 2016; IRES, 2019;
Lockwood and Cuevas, 2022; Lusky-Weisrose et al., 2021; McCart et al., 2010). In Europe, the
Roma1 are historically one of the ethnic minorities that have experienced the most heinous perse-
cution and trauma (Powell and Lever, 2017; Rothea, 2007). In the past, they have been enslaved
– in Romania, for example – and subjected to unethical scientific experiments, followed by per-
secution at the hands of the Nazis, which included forced sterilisation and extermination in con-
centration camps, among other things (Fraser, 1995). Even though their protection has substantially
improved since, they continue to be in many ways the target of hate crimes and discrimination
(Barker, 2017; European Commission et al., 2014; James, 2014; Kolarcik et al., 2015). Recent
surveys have found that around 20–30% of European Roma had been victims of bias-motivated
harassment, and around 5% had been victims of physical assaults (European Union Agency for
Fundamental Rights, 2009, 2016). In comparison, the victimisation rate of Roma people is roughly
five times higher than that of the general population (based on the results of the International
Crime Victims Survey (ICVS), Van Dijk et al., 2007).2 In addition, studies conducted across
Europe reveal that the Roma are a high-risk group for trafficking in human beings, specifically
forced begging and sexual exploitation within the European Union (EU) (Campistol et al., 2014;
Gavra and Tudor, 2015; Van Dijk et al., 2014). Kisfalusi et al. (2020) also highlighted that Roma
pupils have a higher probability of being bullied by both non-Roma and Roma peers. It has also
been pointed out that the Roma are a particularly vulnerable group because they are either una-
ware of victim assistance services or distrust these institutions, and do not receive adequate sup-
port when they are victimised (Briones-Vozmediano et al., 2021; Greenfields and Rogers, 2020;
Muftić et al., 2019). Furthermore, it has been found that the police in several EU countries (i.e.
Bulgaria, Hungary, and Spain) target the Roma disproportionally with police stops or other dis-
criminatory practices (Gounev and Bezlov, 2006; Miller et al., 2008).
Research on Roma victimisation has seldom focused on identifying risk factors that could be
addressed by prevention programmes. The few studies conducted on this topic concluded that
younger age, male sex, and visibility are predictors of hate-motivated victimisation among the
Roma (European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, 2016; Wallengren et al., 2020, 2023;
Wallengren and Mellgren, 2021). While most research has focused on the study of general preju-
dice concerning the Roma (Orosz et al., 2018; Villano et al., 2017), Wallengren et al. (2023) added
some interesting nuances with respect to the hate-motivated violence against the Roma in Sweden.
Rather than ethnicity, visibility was found to be an important predictor of victimisation. To prevent
victimisation, the participants in the study used strategies, or ‘routine precautions’ in the words of
Felson and Clarke (2010), to decrease their visibility. Some of the techniques employed were to
conceal their ethnic background, change their names, or even avoid non-Roma contexts (Wallengren
et al., 2023).
Get this document and AI-powered insights with a free trial of vLex and Vincent AI
Get Started for FreeStart Your Free Trial of vLex and Vincent AI, Your Precision-Engineered Legal Assistant
-
Access comprehensive legal content with no limitations across vLex's unparalleled global legal database
-
Build stronger arguments with verified citations and CERT citator that tracks case history and precedential strength
-
Transform your legal research from hours to minutes with Vincent AI's intelligent search and analysis capabilities
-
Elevate your practice by focusing your expertise where it matters most while Vincent handles the heavy lifting
Start Your Free Trial of vLex and Vincent AI, Your Precision-Engineered Legal Assistant
-
Access comprehensive legal content with no limitations across vLex's unparalleled global legal database
-
Build stronger arguments with verified citations and CERT citator that tracks case history and precedential strength
-
Transform your legal research from hours to minutes with Vincent AI's intelligent search and analysis capabilities
-
Elevate your practice by focusing your expertise where it matters most while Vincent handles the heavy lifting
Start Your Free Trial of vLex and Vincent AI, Your Precision-Engineered Legal Assistant
-
Access comprehensive legal content with no limitations across vLex's unparalleled global legal database
-
Build stronger arguments with verified citations and CERT citator that tracks case history and precedential strength
-
Transform your legal research from hours to minutes with Vincent AI's intelligent search and analysis capabilities
-
Elevate your practice by focusing your expertise where it matters most while Vincent handles the heavy lifting
Start Your Free Trial of vLex and Vincent AI, Your Precision-Engineered Legal Assistant
-
Access comprehensive legal content with no limitations across vLex's unparalleled global legal database
-
Build stronger arguments with verified citations and CERT citator that tracks case history and precedential strength
-
Transform your legal research from hours to minutes with Vincent AI's intelligent search and analysis capabilities
-
Elevate your practice by focusing your expertise where it matters most while Vincent handles the heavy lifting
Start Your Free Trial of vLex and Vincent AI, Your Precision-Engineered Legal Assistant
-
Access comprehensive legal content with no limitations across vLex's unparalleled global legal database
-
Build stronger arguments with verified citations and CERT citator that tracks case history and precedential strength
-
Transform your legal research from hours to minutes with Vincent AI's intelligent search and analysis capabilities
-
Elevate your practice by focusing your expertise where it matters most while Vincent handles the heavy lifting