applied psychology Applied psychology is the use of psychological methods and findings of scientific psychology to solve practical problems of human and animal behavior and experience. Educational and organizational psychology, business management, law, health, pro ...

, investigative psychology attempts to describe the actions of offenders and develop an understanding of crime. This understanding can then help solve crimes and contribute to prosecution and defense procedures.Canter, D. and Youngs (2009) Investigative Psychology: Offender Profiling and the Analysis of Criminal Action. Chichester:Wiley It brings together issues in the retrieval of investigative information, the drawing of inferences about that information and the ways in which police decision making can be supported through various systems derived from scientific research. It should not be confused with profiling which grew out of the experience of police officers offering opinions to their colleagues about the possible characteristics of unknown offenders.

Overview

Investigative Psychology grows directly out of

empirical research Empirical research is research using empirical evidence. It is also a way of gaining knowledge by means of direct and indirect observation or experience. Empiricism values some research more than other kinds. Empirical evidence (the record of one ...

and

logical Logic is the study of correct reasoning. It includes both formal and informal logic. Formal logic is the study of deductively valid inferences or logical truths. It examines how conclusions follow from premises based on the structure of arg ...

inference to cover the full range of investigative activities not only the preparation of 'profiles'. The inference processes at the heart of Investigative Psychology contrast with the approach used in the

Federal Bureau of Investigation The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...

which emphasises subjective processes such as "thinking like the

criminal In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a State (polity), state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definiti ...

". This field provides a system for the integration of many aspects of psychology into all areas of police investigations and forms of crime. Investigative Psychology stresses that the results of scientific psychology can contribute to many aspects of civilian and criminal investigation, including the full range of crimes from burglary to terrorism, not just those extreme crimes of violence that have an obvious

psychopathic Psychopathy, or psychopathic personality, is a personality construct characterized by impaired empathy and remorse, along with bold, disinhibited, and egocentric traits. These traits are often masked by superficial charm and immunity to s ...

component.

Research

The contribution to investigations draws on the extent to which an offender displays various tested characteristics.Canter, D. (2004). Offender Profiling and Investigative Psychology.''Journal of Investigative Psychology and Offender Profiling, Volume 1'', pp. 1-15. as well as procedures for enhancing the processes by which interviews are carried out or information is put before the courts. One aim of investigative psychology research is determining behaviourally important and empirically supported information regarding the consistency and variability of the behaviour of many different types of offenders, although to date most studies have been of violent crimes there is a growing body of research on burglary and arson. It is also important to establish valid and reliable methods of distinguishing between offenders and between offences. Already the use of

statistical analysis Statistical inference is the process of using data analysis to infer properties of an underlying probability distribution.Upton, G., Cook, I. (2008) ''Oxford Dictionary of Statistics'', OUP. . Inferential statistical analysis infers properties of ...

techniques such as Multi dimensional scaling in offender profiling has provided support for a

theoretical A theory is a systematic and rational form of abstract thinking about a phenomenon, or the conclusions derived from such thinking. It involves contemplative and logical reasoning, often supported by processes such as observation, experimentation, ...

distinction between

homicide Homicide is an act in which a person causes the death of another person. A homicide requires only a Volition (psychology), volitional act, or an omission, that causes the death of another, and thus a homicide may result from Accident, accidenta ...

offenders as either instrumental (43% of offenders) or expressive (31% of offenders) in their use of aggression. The most recent advances have seen the development of a Narrative Action System Model for differentiating criminals' styles of offending, allowing empirically based 'modus operandi' to be identified within a broad range of offence types from sexual assault and serial murder to stalking, burglary and robbery.Alison, L., & Canter, D. (1999). ''Profiling in Policy and Practice''. In Canter, D. & Alison, L. (1999). Profiling in Policy and Practice. Aldershot, UK: Dartmouth, pp. 3-22. This method of analysis has also expanded upon the original theoretical distinction by identifying sub-themes of aggressive action which can be used to further discriminate amongst offenders (Santilla, Hakkanen, Canter & Elfgren, 2003). These behavioural themes have also been linked to background characteristics and post-offence behaviour, demonstrating their usefulness to the investigation of

serial murder A serial killer (also called a serial murderer) is a person who murders three or more people,An offender can be anyone: * * * * * (This source only requires two people) with the killings taking place over a significant period of time in separat ...

cases.Santilla, P., Hakkanen, H., Canter, D., & Elfgren, T. (2003). Classifying Homicide Offenders and Predicting their Characteristics from Crime Scene Behaviors. ''

Scandinavian Journal of Psychology The ''Scandinavian Journal of Psychology'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal on psychology Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Its subject matter includes the behavior of humans and nonhumans, both consciousness, cons ...

, Volume 44'', pp. 107-118. The development and application of these techniques to serial offenders is likely to facilitate an increase in the validity of offender profiling of serial murderers.

References

{{Authority control Forensic psychology Criminal investigation Criminology Offender profiling

Overview

Research

See also

References