Victim-centered justice through profiling: clustering analysis of parent who suffered abuse

Understanding victimization in the context of parent abuse requires a comprehensive approach that considers the complex interplay of demographic, situational, and psychological factors. This study examines 3,834 administrative records from a victim support system, corresponding to 782 unique cases of parents who suffered violence, to identify distinct victim typologies and inform more effective, victim-centered interventions within the legal system. Drawing on variables such as age, gender, marital status, socioeconomic background, and harm types (physical, psychological, economic, and social), the dataset was analyzed using K-means clustering to uncover latent patterns. A two-cluster solution was selected based on statistical validation, offering both interpretability and strong group separation. Cluster 0, comprising 26.3% of the sample, was characterized by a slightly older average age (mean = 61.3 years) and exhibited a diverse set of vulnerability factors not primarily defined by psychological harm resulting from criminal acts. Members of this cluster showed elevated rates of widowhood (28.6% compared to 17.7% in Cluster 1), suggesting potentially different social support needs. In contrast, Cluster 1, labeled Psychological-Impact Victims, constituted the majority of the sample (73.7%), defined by the presence of psychological harm following criminal incidents, with a lower average age (mean = 58.0 years) and higher rates of separation or divorce (26.9% vs. 19.4%). This binary classification reveals a meaningful distinction in victim experiences of parent who suffered violence. Cluster 0 requires broad social support, while Cluster 1 needs trauma-informed psychological care. These findings emphasize the importance of tailored interventions over uniform approaches.