Innocent victim 
Someone who did not contribute to the victimization and is in 
the wrong place at the wrong time. This is the victim we most 
often envision when thinking about enhancing victim rights. 
The victim with minor guilt 
Does not actively participate in their victimization but 
contributes to it in some minor degree, such as frequenting 
high-crime areas. This would be a person that continues to go 
to a bar that is known for nightly assault. 
The guilty victim, guilty offender 
Victim and offender may have engaged in criminal activity 
together. This would be two people attempting to steal a car, 
rob a store, sell drugs, etc. 
The guilty offender, guiltier victim 
The victim may have been the primary attacker, but the 
offender won the fight. 
Guilty victim 
The victim instigated a conflict but is killed in self-defense. An 
example would be an abused woman killing her partner while 
he is abusing her. 
Imaginary victim 
Some people pretend to be victims and are not. This would be 
someone falsifying reports. 
Other criminologists developed similar typologies but included other elements. For example, Hans Von 
Hentig expanded his typology from situational factors that Mendelsohn looked at and considered the role 
of biological, sociological and psychological factors. For example, Von Henting said the young, elderly, and 
women are more susceptible to victimization because of things such as physical vulnerabilities. It is important 
to recognize that some crimes, and ultimately crime victims, are excluded in these typologies such as white-
collar and corporate crime. 
4 
5 
Von Hentig’s Typology 
Young people 
Immature, under adult supervision, lack physical strength and 
lack the mental and emotional maturity to recognize 
victimization 
Females/elderly 
Lack of physical strength 
Mentally ill/intellectually disabled 
Can be taken advantage of easily 
Immigrants 
Cannot understand language or threat of deportation makes 
them vulnerable 
Minorities 
Marginalized in society, so vulnerable to victimization. 
Dull normals 
Reasonably intelligent people who are naive or vulnerable in 
some way. These people are easily deceived. 
The depressed 
The acquisitive 
Gullable, easily swayed, and not vigilant. 
Greedy and can be targeted for scammers who would take 
advantage of their desire for financial gain. 
The lonesome and broken-hearted 
Often prone to victimization by intimate partners. They desire 
to be with someone at any cost. They are susceptible to 
manipulation. 
Tormentors 
Primary abusers in relationships and become victims when the 
one being abused turns on them. 
Blocked, exempted, and fighting victims 
Enter situations in which they are taken advantage such as 
blackmail. 
Von Hentig’s work was the basis for later theories of victim precipitation. Victim precipitation suggests 
4. Burgess, A. W. (2013). Victimology: Theories and applications. (3rd ed.). Burlington: Jones and Bartlett. 
5. Von Hentig, H. (1948). The criminal and his victim: Studies in the sociobiology of crime. New Haven: Yale University Press. 
ALISON S. BURKE, DAVID CARTER, BRIAN FEDOREK, TIFFANY MOREY, LORE RUTZ-BURRI, AND SHANELL
SANCHEZ
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