Short and long term victims of crime

Along with studying the people that commit crimes, Criminologists also study those who are affected by it. Victims of crime often tend to exhibit different behaviours after suffering from a criminal act against them, which changes between short and long term victims. In the short term, victims can feel uncomfortable, scared, and traumatized. This is due to the bad experience that they recently went through, and it’s the body's natural way of responding towards it. In the long term, victims can become detached from their former selves and tend to change their personality and behaviours, becoming less active in their communities, distancing from friends and family, and seeking closure. However, closure does not exist, so they will never truly be freed from the trauma. Another thing that doesn't help with long-term victims is victim shaming, where events or people bring up memories of the past.