Offender profiling: The bottom-up approach Flashcards
What is the bottom-up approach?
A data-driven approach where statistical techniques are used to produce predictions about the likely characteristics of an offender.
Define ‘Geographical offender’
A form of bottom-up approach profiling based on the pattern shown by location of a series of crimes.
Explain investigative psychology
It was proposed by David Canter, who proposed that profiling can and should be based on psychological theory and research.
Outline the 3 main features of David Canter’s approach
- Interpersonal coherence
- Forensic awareness
- Smallest space analysis
Explain interpersonal coherence (1)
People are consistent with their behaviour and so there will be links with elements of the crime and how they behave in everyday life.
People’s behaviour changes over time and so looking at differences in crimes over a 4 year period.
Explain forensic awareness (2)
Certain behaviours may reveal an awareness of particular police techniques and past experience.
Explain smallest space analysis (3)
Data about many crime scenes and offender characteristics are correlated so that most common characteristics can be identified.
What are the 3 underlying themes in smallest space analysis
- Instrumental opportunistic - using a murder to achieve a goal, by taking the easiest opportunity.
- Instrumental cognitive - being concerned about being detected and so being more planned.
- Expressive impulsive - uncontrolled, in the heat of strong emotions, provoked by victim.
Explain geographical prophiling
Canter proposed that people do not just reveal themselves through the crimes they commit but also through the locations they choose.
Offenders are more likely to commit a crime near where they live or habitually travel as it involves less effort.
It analyses the locations of a connected series of crimes and considers where the crimes were committed and the spatial relationships between them and the place of residence.
Explain circle theory in geographical profiling
Canter and Larkin proposed that most offenders have a spatial mindset (they commit crimes within a kind of imagined circle).
Marauder - the offender’s home is within the geographical area in which crimes are committed.
Commuter - the offender travels to another geographical and commits crimes within a defined space around which a circle can be drawn.
Explain criminal geographic targeting
A computerised system developed by Rossmo
3-dimentional map showing spatial data related to time, distance and movement to and from crime scenes.
Map is called jeopardy surface.
The different colours indicate likely closeness to crime scene.
Outline the evaluation points for the bottom-up approach
Scientific basis
Application of bottom-up
Limitations of circle theory
