Both sociology and victimology study the actions, ideals and motivations of groups. They are concerned with both the micro analytical questions regarding how individuals respond to specific events as well as a macro analytical approach that focuses on the overall effects of events on groups. This macro analytical approach has helped victimologists identify groups of individuals who have a higher percentage risk of becoming victims of serious violent crimes.
Sociology has a much longer history, beginning in the 19th century, as a method for evaluating the rapid changes occurring throughout society. Victimology began in the late 20th century as a response to the growing concern for individuals who had previously been victimized by violent crime. Victimology was fueled by the growing feminist movement, who saw it as a method for discussing the effects of violent mistreatment. Victimology has been influenced by the growing demand for attention toward victim groups and victim organizations.
Victimology is considered a subcategory of criminology, which is a subcategory under sociology. As a result, many of the techniques and ideas associated with sociology are also used to understand and respond to victimology. As a subcategory under sociology, victimology focuses on gathering information and detecting trends in crime data as a means of explaining why certain crimes occur, why individuals are chosen as victims and who is making those choices.
Victimologists use victimization surveys, similar in style to sociological surveys, as their primary tool of data collection, allowing them access to the individual emotions, fears and challenges of individuals who have been the victim of a violent crime. They hold to the same ethical responsibilities as sociologists, requiring anonymity for their survey takers. They attempt to draw conclusions based on similar elements of various instances, such as the general dominance of certain traits in offenders and victims. These traits include sex, age, socioeconomic status, employment, education and marital status. The goal is to determine who is at a higher risk of becoming an offender or of becoming a victim.