Offender Profiling: Bottom-up Approach Flashcards
What is the bottom up approach
Systematic analysis of evidence at the crime scene to reveal info about the criminal’s characteristics, routine and social background
-profile is data driven and not created using fixed typologies
What is investigative psychology
Uses combo of statistical analysis and psychological theory
-info from the crime added to crime database and statistical analysis used to search for similarities and patterns linking crimes to predict future crimes
What are the three elements of investigative psychology
Interpersonal coherence- looking for a correlation between how people behave at the crime and what that may reveal about their real life
Time and place- can tell info about where criminal lives and works
Forensic awareness- evidence to suggest the individual has previously committed a crime
What is geographical profiling
Uses info about the location of linked crime scenes to make inferences about the likely base of the offender
-and creates a hypothesis about how the offender is thinking and their modus operandi
What are the elements of geographical profiling
Spatial consistency- offenders will likely stick to certain area
Circle theory- pattern of offending likely to form a circle around their usual residence (in the middle is centre of gravity)
Jeopardy surface- using this info they can make an educated guess about where the offender will likely strike again
What is the marauder model
Commits crimes within criminal range from own home
What is the commuter model
Travels from home to familiar area then commits crimes within criminal range of that area
What can spatial decision making of offender reveal
If it was planned/opportunistic, their occupation/age/mode of transport
Expand on weakness that can lead to wrongful convictions
-eg in murder of Rachel Nickells man wrongfully imprisoned as he met the criteria for the profile, whereas real offender dismissed as he was too tall
-just because someone meets the criteria of the profile does not necessarily mean they are the culprit
-research found advice from psychological profilers helpful in 85% of cases but in only 3% led to identification of offender
-bottom-up approach should be used with caution and should only be used to narrow down list and not pin-point offenders
Expand on strength that can be applied to a wider range of crimes compared to top-down
-eg spatial consistency can narrow down list of suspects for rape, murder, burglary and theft while top-down only useful for profiling of more extreme cases
-more useful profiling technique as not limited in its application, may help to identify more offenders
Expand on weakness that relies heavily on quality of data that police provide
-recordings of crimes and EWTs unfortunately not always accurate and varies between police forces, 75% of crimes not even reported to police in first place
-calls into questions the usefulness of this approach alone to create an offender profile
Expand on strength that approach has scientific basis
-potentially more objective and scientific than top-down as more grounded in evidence in psychological theory and less driven by speculation and hunches
-aid of advanced AI, investigators able to manipulate geographical and psychological data quickly to produce insights that assist in investigation
-less open to bias, can be used more fairly in convicting criminals, more fair CJS
