Although crime and violence represent a major national social issue which affects virtually every American, the stress of victimization has not been studied epidemiologically, empirically, coherently, or systematically. As a result, little is known about the evaluation of the consequences of trauma-induced stress or about how best to treat the victim. Few mental health programs for victims have been established by the States or Congress. The experience of victimization is devastating: victims are often almost overcome with fear, anger, guilt, and shame. Victims urgently need to be liberated from these feelings so that the scars will not be disabling for the rest of their lives. The minimum services that should be rendered are often altogether absent -- that is, socially supportive crisis intervention services to minimize disorganization and allay fears. The longer range psychosocial and therapeutic challenge is helping the victim to arrive, ultimately, at mastery and reintegration. In the last few years, some promising treatment approaches have developed. They generally involve three intervention stages: encouraging ventilation and actively listening; facilitating the regaining of equilibrium and cognitive control through educative modeling and forecasting; and developing a service plan, including followup counseling. The introduction of large-scale social survey research into the victimization field is the single most important development in recent years. Six reference notes and 20 references are included.