Victim

Person who is the target one or more forms of violence. With respect to male violence, it includes not only the women who suffer the effects of the various forms of violence and harassment, but also the people close to them who are also targeted. We speak of secondary victims when the male violence extends to family members, friends or work colleagues who help the victim, whom the aggressor may harass or intimidate to dissuade them from doing so. The term vicarious victims is used to refer to victims of vicarious violence, which is a form of violence in which harm is inflicted on a woman by hurting the people most precious to her, such as her children, parents, sisters, etc. In this way the abuser hopes to continue forcing the woman to submit to and tolerate his demands or, by keeping her alive, to perpetuate the abuse by ensuring permanent and irreversible damage. The term vicarious violence was first coined by psychologist Sonia Vaccaro almost a decade ago. It comes from the concept of ‘vicarious’, which refers to one individual performing a function in place of another.