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Boost theory

Definition

The explanation that repeat victimisation arises because the original offender returns, having gained operational knowledge of the target, its routines, and its vulnerabilities during the first offence.

Related terms

Flag theory
The explanation that repeat victimisation arises because a target has stable characteristics, such as poor natural surveillance or weak security, that make...
Hot spot
A small geographic area, sometimes as small as a single address or street segment, where crime concentrates at a rate substantially above...
Lifestyle-routine activity theory
A framework that links individual victimisation risk to the daily routines and lifestyle choices that bring potential victims into proximity with motivated...
Repeat victimisation
The empirical pattern in which a small proportion of people or locations experience a disproportionate share of violent incidents. Domestic violence shows...
Series victimisation
A pattern in which a victim experiences multiple similar incidents so frequently that they cannot recall each one individually. Domestic abuse is...

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