Offender profiling-Bottom-up approach Flashcards
What is the bottom up approach?
Profilers work from the evidence collected to develop hypotheses about the likely characteristics of offenders. It is based on quantitative statistical
analysis and can be used with all types of crime.
What is investigative psychology?
It aims to establish patterns of behaviour that are likely to occur across crime scenes. This creates a statistical database which acts as a baseline for comparisons. Central to the approach is interpersonal coherence, which is the way that an offender behaves at the scene and how they interact with the victim. This may help to see how the offender relates to women.
What is geographical profiling?
It uses information to do with the location of linked crime scenes to make inferences about the likely home of an offender. This is known as crime mapping and the assumption is that offenders will restrict their work to familiar areas.
What did Canter and Larkin propose?
They said that there are two types of offender: marauders who operate close to their home, and commuters who travel a distance from their residence. Crucially, the pattern of offending is likely to create a circle around their residence, giving an insight into the nature of the offense.
What are the strengths of the bottom up approach?
There is evidence supporting investigative psychology as several characteristics were identified in most cases of sexual assault.
Canter and Lundrigan got information from 120 murders and found that bodies were located in difference directions, forming a circle around the offenders base.
There is more scientific evidence to support bottom up profiling as data can be found to assist the process.
There is wider application to crimes and offences
What are the weaknesses of the bottom up approach?
There is mixed results as Copson found the profile useful in 83% of cases but it only identified the offender in 3% and Kocsis found chemisrty students produced a more accurate profile for a murder case than a detective.
