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Japanese Association of Victimology (JAV)
c/o Keio University
Mita 2-15-45
108 Tokyo, Japan

The two main purposes of this association are to help raise the academic standards of victimology and coordinate joint research projects (especially current issues).

The assumption of this association is that victimology is interdisciplinary, therefore all types of professional persons are welcome as members.

There are currently about 300 members in this organization. These are mostly academic persons with about 10-20 % in practice (lawyers, police, social workers, prosecutors and government employees).

The association publishes the Japanese Journal of Victimology which has been operating for almost six years. It is published once every year. The association was founded on November 17, 1990 at the Keio University in Tokyo. The first and continuing president is Professor Koichi Miyazawa. The annual membership meeting is held each year in the last week of June. These meetings are also used to conduct a seminar on special topics. Recent topics have been: victims of dishonest sales; victims of illegal credit transactions; and, victims of school bullying.

Under the auspices of the Japanes Association of Victimology, some members (27) have formed a joint research group which has thus far conducted four projects dealing with: seriously injured victims; survivors of murder; victims of property crimes; and a measurement of the victim counciousness of criminal justice practitioners.

All four projects were started in 1992 and continued for three years. The results of these four projects were recently presented to the National Police Agency (NPA) for their concideration. The impact of these reports has been significant and a number of new initiatives have begun. Also there as been a recognition by the NPA that changes must occur. One example is their willingness to start special victim services training. The Yoshie Miyazawa Criminal Policy Foundation has provided funds
for special victim services training at the NPA.

For the first time, last year the JAV organized a joint symposium with the Japanese Society of Criminology, Japanese Society of Criminal Sociology, and the Japanese Society of Criminal Psychology. Prior to this symposium these organizations operated quite separately.

However, as a direct result of the symposium, new sharing of resources and information on topics of mutual concern has occurred. At this symposium one of the key panel discussions (chaired by the JAV's Secretary General, Professor Hidemichi Morosawa dealt with the future of victim services in Japan. In the last year there have been some very significant developments in the field of victim services. This June, the annual meeting will decide a new agenda for future directions.