Offender Profiling



Profiling Inroduction

There are many definitions of profiling;

“... an educated attempt to provide investigative agencies with specific information as to the type of individual who committed a certain crime...” (Geberth 1981)

The use of the words “educated attempt” may be disputed by some of the modern “profilers” who feel that theirs is closer to science than educated guessing.

The offender profile may be able to give information on the choice of victim, the location, anything that was said by the offender and the nature or style of the assault.

These things may help to give the offender more of a personality, and thus help the police in their hunt for those who commit crime.

Offender Profiling although seen as a recent phenomena, and a phrase only coined in the 1970’s by the FBI, has in fact been used for many years, indeed it seems that it was used to look at the personality of Adolf Hitler during the second world war (for interview in case he was captured).

The psychiatrist, Walter Langer, actually predicted that Hitler’s likely response to defeat would be suicide.

Langer suggested that Hitler’s Mothers death from cancer had affected her son at a critical time, and had results in an inability to sustain intimate relationships, a belief in his own infallibility (i.e. perfection), and a determination to prove his masculinity.

The FBI and Offender Profiling

In 1978 the FBI established a psychological profiling unit. Data produced from criminal investigations together with interview information from incarcerated offenders, child molestors and serial murderers (e.g. Charles Manson).

The aim was to identify the major personality characteristics of serious offenders and how they differed from non-offenders.

This work led the FBI officers to propose theoretical frameworks distinguishing between different types of offender, e.g. “organised” and “disorganised”.

Organised Offenders

Disorganised Offenders

Evidence of planning

Spontaneous offence

Victim targeted

Victim or location known

Victim personalised

Victim depersonalised

Controlled conversation

Minimal conversation

Crime scene reflects control

Crime scene random or sloppy

Victim submissive

Sudden violence of victim

Use of restraints

Minimal use of restraints

Aggressive acts prior to death

Sexual acts after death

Body Hidden

Body left in view

Weapon and evidence absent

Weapon and evidence often present


Likely Characteristics of Murderers


Organised

Disorganised

Above average IQ

Lives alone, near to crime scene

Socially and sexually competent

Sexually and socially inadequate

Usually living with partner

Experiences serve forms of mental illness

Experiencing anger / depression at the time of attack

Physically or sexually abused in childhood

Follows media coverage of the attack

Frightened and confused at the time of attack.


FBI vs. UK Profiling

Top-down approach (FBI)

This is the approach developed by the FBI in the US , referred to as “crime scene analysis”.

Evidence from the crime scene is compared to patterns from previous crimes in order predict if nay more crimes are likely and when and where they might take place.


Bottom-up approach ( UK )

This is the approach used in the UK , principally developed by Professor David Canter (of Liverpool University ), referred to as “investigative psychology”.

People tend to act consistently in different situations (including crimes), so the way in which a crime was carried out can be used to predict how an offender ill act in other aspects of their life.


Offender Profiling in the UK: Investigative Psychology

David Canter’s approach differs from the FBI in that he looks for ways in which the crime might mirror the behaviour of the offender in everyday life.

This is known as the criminal consistency hypothesis.

The idea that offenders, like all people, act consistently over time and indifferent situations.

Therefore, the way in which a crime is committed will reflect the everyday behaviour and traits of the offender.

The consistency hypothesis has been applied to two areas: