Victimology is an important area of study in criminology as an academic subject, but is also taken seriously by governments and agencies in their assessment of criminal behaviour and their policies on crime. Victimologyaddresses questions such as:

• Why are certain people or groups of people victims of crime?
• Why do some crimes go unreported?
• Why do victims respond in the way that they do?
• What can the state do to stop certain groups becoming victims?
• How can victims be supported following a crime?

This reader brings together some of the classic readings in criminology, dating back to the origins of victimology as a subject during the 1940s. It also includes more recent articles which examine newer issues in victimologysuch as corporate crime, state crime and religious effects and implications on the subject. The book also explores the ongoing development of policy and theories of victimology.

Victims and Victimisation: A Reader brings together, for the first time, these classic and contemporary readings in criminology. It also includes an editorial introduction to the volume and an introduction to each thematic section. It provides key reading for students of criminology, law and sociology.