What is offender profiling?
A method of working out the characteristics of an offender by examining the characteristics of the crime and the crime scene
Top Down Approach to Profiling
- starts with a classification of the crime scene and then the profiler uses the information gained to make judgements about the likely offenders who would fit the circumstances
- relies heavily on the prior knowledge and the intuition of the profiler
Organised offender traits
- average to high intelligence
- socially competent
- plans offences
- uses restraints on victims
- weapon is usually hidden
- body is usually transported from the scene
- victim is specifically targeted
- tries to conceal evidence (e.g. getting rid of fingerprints, blood, semen)
Disorganised offender traits
- below average intelligence
- socially incompetent
- unskilled or unemployed
- minimal use of restraints/ leaves body on display and performs sexual acts post-mortem
- victim is likely to be random
- offender is messy and makes no effort to conceal incriminating evidence
Positive evaluation of top down approach
- useful (cops said they would use again)
Negative evaluation of the top down approach
- not scientific (based on opinions and intuition, argued that profilers do little more than psychics - could make profiling wrong)
- reductionist (assumes a criminal is either organised or disorganised which is oversimplification - suggested that there should be an overlap between the two categories/a mixed offender category)
- generalisability (based on extreme cases which are not representative of the general population)
Bottom up profiling
- data to Profiler
- profiling is based on scientific theory and research
two main types of bottom-up profiling - investigative psychology
- geographical profiling
Investigative psychology - Interpersonal coherence
- the idea that behaviour from the crime will reflect the behaviour in everyday life
- e.g. if a rapist is violent it may indicate how they treat women in other areas of their life
Investigative psychology - Smallest space analysis
- smallest space analysis is a computer programme that utilises databases.
- patterns are identified and recurring themes are correlated.
- e.g. 75% chance of the offender being single, 40+ etc. based on other, similar crimes
Geographical profiling
- criminals reveal themselves by the locations they choose
- it analyses the spatial relationships between different crime scenes and how they might reveal the offenders place of residence
Circle Theory
Offenders have a spatial mindset and they commit crimes in an imagined ‘circle’
Marauders and Commuters
The Marauder: the offender operates in close proximity to their home base.
The Commuters: the offender is likely to have travelled a distance away from their usual residence.
Positive evaluation of the bottom up approach
- case of John Duffy (profile made matched with Duffy’s profile)
- geographical profiling can be used in many different crimes e.g. burglary
- based on evidence so is more scientific than top-down
Negative evaluation of bottom up approach
- focuses on geographical locations and could therefore miss more important details
- could look in the wrong place.
- requires information from other crimes which may be difficult to gather
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Offender profiling14
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Atavistic Form12
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Genetic and neural explanations of crime17
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Eysenck’s theory of personality17
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Cognitive explanation of offending behaviour13
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Psychodynamic explanation of offending behaviour9
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Custodial sentencing and recidivism13
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Behaviour modification in custody6
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Anger management12
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Restorative justice programmes9
