Comparing the lifestyles of victims: A routine activity theory assessment of repeat victimization in Canada

Abstract

This paper simultaneously explores the relationship between social status, routine activity theory, and repeat victimization. This study compares the effects of lifestyle with key social status variables like gender, race, and sexuality, on varying degrees of victimization to answer the question: do routine activities or social status predict repeat victimization? This research is a secondary data analysis using two waves of the Canadian Victimization Survey from 2004 and 2009. Both a logistic regression and multinomial logistic regression are used to analyze the possible causes of repeat victimization. Overall, social status is influenced by lifestyle when predicting victimization; however, key social status variables predict high levels of victimization such as identifying as gay or lesbian or being an Aboriginal Canadian. The most powerful indicator of victimization was if a victim had been previously arrested themselves. The results of this study suggest that, while lifestyle is a strong predictor of victimization, minority groups are still at risk of being victimized at higher levels.

Poly‐victimization of autistic adults: An investigation of individual‐level correlates

“…This alarmingly disproportionate victimization of autistic people is most likely largely due to structural injustices, such as discrimination, stigma, and pervasive negative social attitudes. Autistic adults are often unemployed or underemployed (Baldwin et al, 2014; Hedley et al, 2017; Roux et al, 2013), are more likely to be financially disadvantaged (Cai et al, 2022) and are at increased risk of homelessness (Campbell & Winn, 2015; Stone, 2019) than non‐autistic adults—all forms of disadvantage that have been linked to an increased risk of victimization (Capaldi et al, 2012; Gannon & Mihorean, 2005; Nazaretian & Fitch, 2021; Romans et al, 2007). Autistic people also often report experiencing stigma (Botha et al, 2022) which may be due, at a group level, to stereotypes associated with autism (Dickter & Burk, 2021; Russell & Norwich, 2012) and, at an individual level, from negative perceptions arising from differences in social behaviors (Sasson et al, 2017; Sasson & Morrison, 2019).…”