Editing Victimology (section)

== Victimization rate in United States ==
The [[National Crime Victimization Survey]] (NCVS) is a tool to measure the existence of actual, rather than reported, crimes—the victimization rate.<ref name="NCVS">{{cite web|url=http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/cvict.htm|title=National Crime Victimization Survey Official web site|access-date=2016-05-24|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080223163046/http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/cvict.htm|archive-date=2008-02-23|url-status=dead}}</ref>  The National Crime Victimization Survey is the [[United States]]' "primary source of information on crime victimization.  Each year, data is obtained from a nationally representative sample of 77,200 households comprising nearly 134,000 persons on the frequency, characteristics and consequences of criminal victimization in the United States.  This survey enables the (government) to estimate the likelihood of victimization for  [[rape]], [[sexual assault]], [[robbery]], [[assault]], [[theft]], household burglary, and motor vehicle theft for the population as a whole as well as for segments of the population such as women, the elderly, members of various racial groups, city dwellers, or other groups."<ref name="NCVS" /> According to the [[Bureau of Justice Statistics]] (BJS), the NCVS reveals that, from 1994 to 2005, violent crime rates declined, reaching the lowest levels ever recorded.<ref name="NCVS" /> Property crimes continue to decline.<ref name="NCVS" />

[[Serial killing]]s are waning in particular, and according to a 2020 ''[[American Bar Association|ABA Journal]]'' report, it's in large part because "people are less vulnerable than in the past."<ref name=Serial>{{cite news|url=https://www.abajournal.com/news/article/serial-killings-are-waning-leading-to-speculation-about-the-cause?|title=Serial killings are waning, leading to speculation about the cause|first=Debra|last=Cassens Weiss|date=December 17, 2020|access-date=December 18, 2020}}</ref> This in turn is due to several societal changes, according to experts and a news reports cited by the ''ABA Journal'': (1) "People don't hitchhike anymore;" (2) "They have means of reaching out in an emergency situation using cellphones;" (3) "There are cameras everywhere;” (4) "parents today are less likely to allow [children] to leave home unsupervised;" (5) "interventions that help troubled children might reform potential killers" (for example, [[social work]], [[school nurse]]s, and [[child psychology]]); (6) "easy access to pornography is providing an outlet that satiates ... sexual impulses"; and (7) "would-be serial killers are turning instead to mass shootings."<ref name=Serial /> Other reports show some evidence that serial killings are (8) [[General deterrence|deterred generally]] by "longer prison sentences" and (9) [[Specific deterrence|deterred specifically]] by "a reduction in parole."<ref name=Serial />