The International Crime Victims Survey began in 1987 in order to provide international data on personal experiences of crimes. This report of the 2004-2005 survey includes results from every continent. One of the founders of ICVS, van Dijk is now professor of victimology and human security at Tilburg University, the Netherlands. The information is derived from personal interviews with victims of crimes including, car theft, burglary, sexual offenses and consumer fraud. The respondents give the facts of the crimes against them and then rate the police response, their impression of the efficacy of the justice system and their feelings of general security and faith in local law enforcement. Comprehensive summaries of results are given by crime and country. The work is sponsored in part by the United Nations. Distributed in the US by ISBS Annotation ©2008 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
