Male prisoners’ vulnerabilities and the ideal victim concept

Men in prison are often seen as the creators of victims and are positioned completely in opposition to the 'ideal victim'. Yet many prisoners are actually victims themselves, in their past, present and future lives, physically, mentally and emotionally. Whilst this does not sit well with feminist positions of offender blaming and punishment, it is necessary that we confront male victimisation and vulnerabilities in prisons in order to reduce future offending and harm that results from the vulnerable positionality. Drawn from interviews conducted as part of an ethnographic study, this chapter examines the vulnerabilities of men in prison and the unseen victimisation processes that they undergo. Male prisoners may, in many cases, be victims of the socio-structural inequalities and class based ‘structural violence’ which Christie (1986: 24) highlighted; however, in addressing the subjective identities occupied by these ‘non-ideal’ victims, a greater understanding of the truths and experiences of the ‘non-ideal’ offender is provided.

Conceptualising victims of antisocial behaviour is far from ‘ideal’

This chapter uses Christie’s (1986) ideal victim’s framework to critically deconstruct notions of anti-social behaviour (ASB) victimisation, by conceptualising individual and community experiences of ASB. An examination of 'personal' ASB (ONS, 2012) assesses how far Christie's thesis can be applied to individual victims of targeted non-criminal behaviour, with a focus on social housing, stigmatisation and vulnerability. As 'environmental' and 'nuisance' ASB (ONS, 2012) can be experienced by more than one victim, perceptions of communities suffering from ASB victimisation is also considered, with examples from both residential neighbourhoods and public spaces explored to provide a contemporary understanding of these phenomena. Overall, the chapter illustrates how political priorities, societal and media discourses, and hierarchies of victimisation make conceptualising victims of ASB far from ideal.

New victimisations: female sex worker hate crime and the ‘ideal victim’

Female sex worker victim characteristics and their social, situational and interactive contexts have not substantially changed. Yet, the manner in which female sex worker victimisation is currently understood has changed in some quarters. This chapter documents the unusual inclusion of female sex workers into Merseyside police hate crime policy and practice. Given that female sex workers embody a ‘non-ideal’ victim identity the focus here is to consider what this development may mean for Christie’s (1986) ‘ideal victim’ thesis. In so doing the role (or lack of) emotion and compassion will be discussed. The chapter concludes that victims and victimisation have been reimagined and new victimisations have arisen. However, with regard to hate crime, and the social construction of, and criminal justice responses to the victimisation of female sex workers Christie’s ‘ideal victim’ thesis remains contemporarily relevant and predominantly intact.

The ideal victim through other(s’) eyes

Following up on the illuminating article ‘The Ideal Victim’ by Nils Christie, this chapter expands on and reacts to its key arguments. Christie assumes that the most important reasons for perceiving a victim as legitimate and blameless lie in the specific attributions of the victim, and those of the relationship between victim and offender. The article aims at expanding these two arguments on the basis of more contemporary theories in victimology such as the Stereotype Content Model and the Moral Typecasting Theory. However, the importance of two observer related aspects that Christie leaves underdeveloped will also be emphasized. Firstly, the individual’s sense of threat and subsequent coping when confronted with a victim will be discussed. Secondly, the society’s particular interests and values at the time of victimization will be considered. The concept of framing is of particular importance in both aspects, because it can be used to explain how victims may (ex-post) be accepted as ideal or non-ideal, irrelevant of their ‘objective’ attributes, but dependent on the framer, either on collective or individual level.

Environmental crime, victimisation, and the ideal victim

This chapter continues the tradition of concentrating on the sociology of phenomena by invoking a case study which draws on a personal experience of the closure of an aluminium plant in the north-east of England. From a victimological and feminist inspired perspective tensions between social and environmental justice are briefly summarised. The chapter first considers the victim in the context of green criminology and specifically the human victim in relation to environmental and global justice. The chapter then considers community victimisation as harm and as non-ideal victimisation. Next, the corporation as monster and non-ideal offenders are considered. A discussion about victimisation from environmental governance leads into the conclusion which laments the under-developed moral and ethical debates arising from a case study that has broader global relevance.

Conclusion

This chapter reiterates the importance of Christie’s work, and this volume’s reinterrogation of the ‘Ideal Victim’, both historically and in our modern age. The chapter then explores the relationship between Christie’s work and the development of restorative and transitional justice movements. The chapter concludes with a discussion of the limitations of the volume and suggests further work to be undertaken both in keeping with Christie’s work and in the field of victimology more generally.

Denying victim status to online fraud victims: the challenges of being a ‘non-ideal victim’

Online fraud victimisation affects millions of individuals globally. Despite its prevalence, it remains a contested area, whereby there is a strong victim blaming attitude towards those who are victims. There is a strong negative stereotype that victims are greedy, gullible, uneducated and somewhat deserving of their victimisation. This works as a barrier to silence and stigmatise individuals who are fearful to disclose their victimisation to family, friends, law enforcement and other third parties. Using Christie’s (1986) notion of the ‘ideal victim’, this chapter examines how online fraud victims are denied victim status despite the offences perpetrated against them. Through an application of the five characteristics that Christie (1986) asserts constitute an ideal victim, this chapter explores the challenges that currently exist for online fraud victims to be recognised as legitimate victims, and the factors which operate to deny them of this victimisation status. The chapter concludes with a discussion of the implications for online fraud victims in the current environment. It advocates the need for change to better respond to online fraud victims, rather than exacerbating or adding to the trauma they have already experienced at the hands of offenders.

The ‘ideal’ rape victim and the elderly woman: a contradiction in terms?

There is now an extensive body of literature examining sexual violence against women and girls. However, there remains an important gap in relation to ‘older’ women, who have been almost entirely absent from research, policy and practice developments. Traditionally, older age has been reviewed as a protective factor for violent crime, including sexual violence, and both criminologists and feminists have largely neglected those aged over 60 in their scholarship. This chapter examines this absence and argues that ‘real rape’ myths and stereotypes have contributed to the invisibility of older victims. Findings from the first national study to examine sexual violence against people aged 60 and over are presented and discussed in light of the existing literature.

The lived experiences of veiled Muslim women as ‘undeserving’ victims of Islamophobia

Following the terrorist attacks of 9/11 and 7/7, and more recently the ISIS-directed attacks in Paris and Brussels the religion of Islam is associated with terrorism and the global ‘war on terror’. Muslim women who wear the veil in public are stigmatised as ‘other’ and demonised as ‘dangerous’. The wearing of the veil is understood as a practice synonymous with religious fundamentalism and Islamist extremism. Correspondingly, media discourses and political rhetoric about Islamist extremism are often illustrated by the image of a Muslim woman in veil. The veil is understood as a ‘threat’ to notions of integration and national cohesion, and a visual embodiment of gender oppression and gender inequality. Consequently, veiled Muslim women are vulnerable to hate crime attacks in public. Drawing on Christie’s (1986) concept of the ‘ideal victim’, this chapter considers the implications of the label of ‘undeserving victims’ for veiled Muslim women who have experienced anti-Muslim hate crime. It argues that they are often denied the ‘ideal victim’ identity due to the demonisation and criminalisation of the veil, especially in light of the banning of the veil in European countries such as France and Belgium.

Creating ideal victims in hate crime policy

This chapter suggests that problems over the perception of the nature of hate crime mean that often victims of disablist hate crime are overlooked. Developed partly through campaign group activism and high profile cases, hate crime has become a solid part of criminal justice policy and practice. The legal framework recognises different forms of crime motivated by prejudice or hostility towards victims based on their race, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity and/or disability. However, this chapter demonstrates that there are particular problems with the implementation of provisions related to disablist hate crime which can be understood by utilising Christie’s ‘ideal victim’ typology. Born out of an identity politics which sought recognition for the specific harms of hate crime, the development of policy has been shaped by sometimes simplistic perceptions of what it is to be victimised, often framed around issues of stranger danger and attributing recognition to ‘deserving victims’. This reliance on identity politics often means that victims of disablist hate crime are portrayed as weak and vulnerable, which can contribute to anxiety. This chapter shows the relevance of Christie’s ideal victim thesis due to an increasing emphasis on identity politics being used to determine ‘deserving’ and ‘legitimate’ victims.