Evolution of Suffering: From Ancient Rituals to Modern Injustice

It wasn’t until the nineteenth century that the word victim was used negatively, in connection with harm or loss in general (Spalek, 2006).

In the modern criminal justice system, the word victim has come to describe any person who has experienced injury, loss, or hardship due to the illegal action of another individual, group, or organization (see generally Karmen, 2012). The term victimology first appeared in 1949, in a book about murderers written by forensic psychiatrist Fredric Wertham.