forensics Flashcards
define crime
any act that is unlawful or punished by the state
what is offender profiling
refers to the popular conceptions of how offenders are caught.
describe the top down approach
also called crime scene analysis, an analysis of a previous crime can help find a likely suspect. for example if two women were killed with a hammer in close areas, they may be linked crimes
give 3 negative factors about the top down approach
- wont work on an offenders first offense
- little focus on prevention of future crimes as it requires more crimes to be committed to link them together
- crimes by one individual may have no outstanding links. e.g they could kill a woman with a gun in the forest and then a man with a knife in the city
what is an organised offender?
these are individuals who plan their crime out and do things such as cover their tracks. high levels of engagement with a selected victim
what is a disorganised offender?
an offender who commits a crime with little planning. low levels of engagement with a randomly selected victim
which type of offender is harder to catch?
organised
describe the bottom up approach
a data driven technique where statistical techniques are used to generate a prediction. for example, if an offender killed two women by a lake 1 week apart from each other, they may do that exact thing again
give 2 negatives of the bottom up approach
- wrongful convictions due to multiple people fitting the profile
- generally unreliable
what is geographical profilling?
a form of bottom up profiling based on the location of crimes committed
what is investigative psychology
a form of bottom up offender profiling based on psychological theory
what is the atavistic form?
a explanation for criminal behaviour suggesting offenders are born with a criminal personality
who researched the atavistic form?
Cesar Lombroso
what is the genetic explanation for offending?
one or more genes predispose individuals to criminal behaviour
what is the difference between a monozygotic twin (MZ) and a dizygotic twin (DZ)
MZ twins are genetically the same whereas DZ twins are 50%
what is the neural explanation for offending?
structure of the brain may be different in offenders
what is the prefrontal cortex effect on offending
violent individuals tend to have decreased functioning in their prefrontal cortex
how does noradrenaline effect offending?
both very high and low levels of this have been asoociated with violence
how does serotonin effect offending?
low levels of this increase the likelihood of violence
give a characteristic of an extrovert
outgoing
give a characteristic of an introvert
less outgoing
give a characteristic of neuroticism
tendency to experience negative states
give a characteristic of psychotism
these are egocentric and aggressive
what is cognitive distortion?
a form of irrational thinking
what is an affect of maternal deprivation that can be linked to offending?
lack of a primary caregiver can lead to affectionless psychopathy
what is minimalisation / magnification
magnification and minimalisation are cognitive disorders where consequences of an action are either over or under exaggerated
what is hostile attribution bias
when someone has a leaning to always thinking the worst