The framework consists of four stages of becoming an 'official victim,' and the processes or transitions between each stage. The stages are: 1) harmed, injured or suffering person(s); 2) perceiving or defining oneself as a victim; 3) claiming the victim role from social control agents or significant others; 4) social control agents' recognition of the role claim -- becoming an 'official victim' and receiving compensatory and supportive actions by social control agents. For each stage, the issues of choices facing the individual and factors affecting transition to the next stage are discussed. The framework is designed to accommodate most of the questions victimologists ask, to clarify the connections between these questions, to cast some old questions in a new light, and to stimulate new questions. (Author abstract)