offender profiling - top-down approach

Question 1

l6owhat is offender profiling?

Answer 1

• profilers scrutinise: evidence, crime scene, witness reports and generate hypotheses about probable characteristics of offender from characteristics of offence
• investigative tool employed by police when solving crimes - narrow list of likely suspects

Question 2

AO1: top-down approach

Answer 2

• top-down approach
• development
• importance of two categories + characteristics
• 6 stages

Question 3

what is the top-down approach?

Answer 3

• what is known about crime + offender matched to a pre-existing template that the FBI developed
• start with pre-established typology + work down in order from this to assign offenders to one of two categories based on evidence + witness reports: organised/disorganised
• described as a qual approach - use of overall picture + typology

Question 4

how was the top-down approach developed?

Answer 4

36 sexually motivated serial killers were interviewed to develop a list of characteristics that allows current offenders to be assigned to

Question 5

what is important about the two categories?

Answer 5

• each category has certain characteristics
• meaning if data from a crime scene matched some characteristics of one category - could predict other likely characteristics help find offender

Question 6

what are the 6 stages of the top-down approach?

Answer 6

• profiling inputs - data collected here incl description of crime scene (photos/sketches), background of victim etc - all info included + suspects not considered because of bias
• decision process models - data organised into meaningful patterns - ex issue: time (night/day long time/short time)
• crime assessment - based on data - crime classed organised/disorganised
• criminal profile - profile constructed - includes hypotheses about likely characteristics
• crime assessment - written report given to those investigating + people are matched + evaluated - if new evidence/no suspect identified - back to step 2
• apprehension - if suspect apprehended - legitimacy of each conc at each stage of profile process reviewed

Question 7

what are the characteristics of a disorganised criminal?

Answer 7

• not planned + typically leave evidence - often no attempt to move/conceal corpse
• below average intelligence
• under alcohol/drugs/mentally ill
• likely to come from unstable/dysfunctional family
• often ‘blitz’ victims - overwhelming force to assault them
• often isolated from others - live alone

Question 8

what are the characteristics of organised killers?

Answer 8

• above average intelligence
• attractive + charming where victims seduced
• usually three crime scenes - met, killed, disposed
• lengths to cover tracks - forensically savvy
• psychopathic
• planned - little evidence
• often psychopathic

Question 9

evaluate top-down approach

Answer 9

+ canter et al 2004 - support for categories
- godwin 2002 - counterpoint for categories
+ meketa 2017 - wider application
- canter et al - flawed evidence
- copson 1995 - usefulness

Question 10

how is there support for a distinct organised category of offender?

Answer 10

• canter et al 2004
• analysis - 100 US murders committed by a different serial killer
• assessed co-occurrence of 39 aspects of serial killings - incl ex. attempt to conceal body
• revealed there is subset of features of many serial killings which coincide FBI typology for organised offenders
• validity

Question 11

what is a counterpoint to the distinct categories of the top-down approach?

Answer 11

• godwin - not mutually exclusive
• difficult to classify killers as one/other - can have contrasting characteristics: high intelligence + leave body
• continuum

Question 12

how is wider application a strength of top-down profiling?

Answer 12

• claimed only for limited crimes - sexually-motivated murder
• meketa 2017 - reported applied to burglary - 85% rise in solved cases in three US states
• adds two more categories (org/disorg) + opportunistic (inexp young offender) and interpersonal (usually knows victim - steal = personal)

Question 13

how is flawed evidence a limitation of the top-down approach?

Answer 13

• FBI profiling developed - interviews with 6 murderers in US - 25 - serial killers and others 2x or 1x
• end = 24 - organised and rest disorg
• canter et al - sample = poor
• not randomly selected/have large sample/ diff kinds of offender/ standard set of questions - each interview diff
• not scientific basis

Question 14

how is usefulness a strength for the top-down approach?

Answer 14

• copson 1995
• questionnaire - 184 US police
• 82% useful
• 90% would use again