The proposed research has three major aims: (1) to examine the choice of initial coping strategies employed by residential burglary victims (both behavioral and psychological) and the role played by others in the decision process; (2) to study the determinants of burglary victims' short-term and long-term emotional recovery, and the role played by others in this process; and (3) to examine the decision process of informal aid providers (""""""""consultants"""""""") and the impact of their interaction with the victim on their short-term and long-term emotional health. A panel design will be employed involving telephone interviews with residential burglary victims (n = 350), theft victims (n = 350), those with whom they consulted (n = 490), and nonvictims (n = 350). A computer-assisted random digit dialing procedure will be used to identify victims and nonvictims in the greater pittsburgh area. The consultants will be identified via their contact with the victim. All participants will be interviewed by phone on two occasions: within a year following the victimization, and one year later. The primary focus is on burglary victims. The inclusion of theft victims in the sample is designed to help determine how much of a burglary victim's response is specific to the nature of the crime and how much of it is a response to being a victim of a property crime in general. The study has both theoretical and practical importance. Theoretically, the project will test a model of victim decision making. From a practical point of view, the study, by examining the sources of burglary victims' distress, may allow for more effective intervention by those who interact with victims immediately after the crime.
