Why Use Victimization Questionnaires?
The main reason to use standardized self-report questionnaires is that they yield the most accurate reports of victimization. The following are some important benefits of questionnaires: • Self-report questionnaires are preferable to official records because they capture many victimizations that are never reported to child protection agencies or the police. (Underreporting is a particularly serious problem in crime victimizations of juveniles (Finkelhor and Ormrod, 1999).) • Self-report questionnaires are also preferable to relying on spontaneous disclosures by victims because victimization is a sensitive topic and victims are often reluctant to bring up the issue on their own. • Standardized self-report questionnaires are preferable to informal questioning because they cover a wide range of victimizations that are often not addressed in informal questioning. • Standardized self-report questionnaires use tested terminology and definitions of categories that are clear and specific. • Se
