Victimology: Theories and Applications

Named 2016 Living Legend by the American Academy of Nursing, Ann Wolbert Burgess has dedicated her career to the study of victims, offenders, and the impact of crime on society. Dr. Burgess continues to bring her years of research and real-world experience working with victims, offenders, FBI, and law enforcement from the courtroom to the classroom in this updated third edition of Victimology: Theories and Applications. This authoritative text provides an overview of issues related to a variety of victims types, such as children, the elderly, women, individuals and groups of a specific race or religion, and victims of internet crime. Within the context of each victim type, Dr. Burgess discusses not only the impact of the crime on the victim, but also covers the motivation of the perpetrator, strategies for intervention, laws that define the nature of the crime, and the legal attempts to punish offenders. Whether a student is considering a career in the criminal justice system, health care, first responder services, social work, or academia, this applied text will guide them toward a deeper understanding of the multifaceted world of victimology and prepare them to better serve victims of crime.
" Victimology: Theories and Applications, Third Edition provides a comprehensive introduction to the study of victimization, crime typologies, and the impact of crime on victims, offenders, and society at large. Each chapter provides an overview of the scope, law, and victim response to crime and concludes with a summary and discussion questions to ensure comprehension. An overview of the issues impacting victims of a wide variety of traditional and contemporary crimes are examined, including child maltreatment, intimate partner violence, bullying, elder abuse, cybercrime and hate crimes. The history and theories of victimology are explored, as well as definitive laws and policies, strategies for intervention, and future research areas. This Third Edition offers a balance between theory and application and will prepare readers to work with victims, offenders, and the justice system. "--
Ann Wolbert Burgess, RN, DNSc, FAAN, is professor of Psychiatric Mental Health Nursing at Boston College's Connell School of Nursing. She received her bachelors and doctoral degrees from Boston University and her masters degree from the University of Maryland. She teaches five forensic courses: Victimology, Forensic Mental Health, Forensic Science, Forensic Science Lab, and Wounded Warriors in Transition. She, with Lynda Lytle Holmstrom (Boston College), cofounded one of the first hospital-based crisis intervention programs for rape victims at Boston City Hospital. She is licensed as an advanced practice nurse in Pennsylvania and Massachusetts, where she also maintains prescriptive authority. Dr. Burgess has testified as an expert witness in 31 states and has received grants and published articles on the topics of rape trauma, child sexual abuse, child pornography, serial offenders, crime classification, posttraumatic stress, elder abuse, and wounded warriors. Dr. Burgess served as chair of the first Advisory Council to the National Center for the Prevention and Control of Rape of the National Institute of Mental Health, was a member of the 1984 U.S. Attorney General's Task Force on Family Violence, served on the planning committee for the 1985 Surgeon General's Symposium on Violence, and served on the National Institute of Health National Advisory Council for the Center for Nursing Research from 1986 to 1988. She was a member of the 1990 Adolescent Health Advisory Panel to the Congress of the United States Office of Technology Assessment and Chair of the National Institutes of Health AIDS and Related Research Study Section (ARRR 6) from 1992 to 1994. She was elected to the National Academy of Sciences Institute of Medicine in October 1994 and chaired the 1996 National Research Council's Task Force on Violence Against Women. She was inducted into the Sigma Theta Tau. Her current research is on patterns of murder-suicide and combat-PTSD.