Asking the offender ‘why’? Victim-survivor views and experiences

This study investigated victim-survivors’ motivation to ask offenders ‘why?’ and the perceived effects of doing so, through interviews with 40 people affected by a range of crimes. Participants reported that uncertainty about the offender's character and self-blame were triggers for wanting to ask why. Uncertainty arose when participants thought the offender might be remorseful or had categorised them as somewhat of a ‘good’ person, as these perceptions conflicted with a potential account of a ‘bad’ character as the sole cause of the offence. Most of the participants opted to communicate with the offender through a restorative justice process, and where possible they were interviewed both before and after the process. Participants selectively incorporated offenders’ explanations (or lack thereof) into their own accounts and tended to develop more extreme views of the offender as either a good character with somewhat understandable reasons for their behaviour, or as a bad character. For many, this reasoning process was further linked to increased feelings of (1) certainty, (2) self-worth and (3) safety. Potential tensions between these perceived effects are discussed, as well as some implications for theory and practice.