5.2. Bottom Up Profiling Flashcards
Whose approach to profiling?
British
Data to classification or classification to data?
Data to classification
What kind of data does it use?
Quantitative
Which type of crimes is this suitable for?
All crimes
What does bottom up profiling do?
Narrows down a list of suspects to find a perpetrator
What is the aim of bottom up profiling?
To create a profile of the offender (routines, background, characteristics)
What comes into investigative psychology?
- Statistical Analysis
- Interpersonal coherence
What is statistical analysis?
A procedure that detects patterns across crime scenes.
It acts as a baseline for comparison
What is interpersonal coherence?
Offender behaviour usually matches everyday behaviour.
= Its coherent -> reveals information about the offender i.e. how they relate to men/women
What is geographical profiling?
- Crime mapping is used to identify time/ base of the offender
- Offenders tend to work in areas they know well = spatial consistency
- This is used with psychological theory to create a profile -> modus operandi
What are the 2 modules of behaviour?
- Marauder
- Commuter
What is a marauder?
Operate close to home
What is a commuter?
Travels to offend
What is circle theory?
Patterns of crime are eventually likely to form a circle around the perpetrator’s base/ home.
It provides information about their crime making decisions.
Strength: Canter assault
- Canter analysed 66 assault cases using smallest space analysis and found several similarities -> backs up interpersonal coherence
Strength: Canter murder
- Canter analysed 120 murder cases and found the perpetrator’s home/ base was usually at the centre of several crime scenes in a circular pattern -> demonstrates circle theory is valid
Weakness: data in system
- The data in the system is only as accurate as it has been input.
- Errors in the system/ profile will cause errors in solving cases
- Case of Rachel Nickel -> sticking too close to profile meant Colin Stagg got convicted as Robert Napper (the perpetrator) was ruled out for being too tall.
Weakness: Copson
- Interviewed police about using offender profiles
- 83% said they were useful
BUT - Only 3% led to correct identification of the perpetrator.
What are the similarities between the top down and bottom up approaches?
- Both are used to narrow the field of suspects
- They both assume that there is a pattern in the offender’s behaviour, which is not always the case
- Both have captured the public’s imagination
