Offender profiling is an investigative tool used to narrow down the range of potential suspects for a crime by predicting the personality, behavioral, and demographic characteristics that an offender is likely to possess, based upon information collected at the crime scene. While offender profiling has been popularized by TV shows and movies such as Criminal Minds, Silence of the Lambs, and Mindhunter, the real-world impact of offender profiling is largely unknown. This book discusses the history of offender profiling, summarizes research on offender profiling methods, and reviews offender profiling evaluations of accuracy and applied impact. This book also describes a promising new offender profiling methodology called evidence-based offender profiling. This new method relies upon empirical data and scientific methods to develop, evaluate, and replicate offender profiles, thereby increasing offender profiling’s accuracy and utility for active police investigations. It uses prior information about statistical regularities between types of offenders and types of offenses to predict the characteristics of offenders in unsolved cases. A discussion of the future of offender profiling research and implications for law enforcement is also included. This book also explains how practitioners can benefit from the use of empirically tested and validated profiles in their unsolved investigations and how the use, continued research, and evaluation of evidence-based offender profiling can advance the quality, prestige, and utility of the field of offender profiling.

This ground-breaking text is the first to provide a detailed overview of Investigative Psychology, from the earliest work through to recent studies, including descriptions of previously unpublished internal reports. Crucially it provides a framework for students to explore this exciting terrain, combining Narrative Theory and an Action Systems framework. It includes empirically tested models for Offender Profiling and guidance for investigations, as well as an agenda for research in Investigative Psychology. Investigative Psychology features: The full range of crimes from fraud to terrorism, including burglary, serial killing, arson, rape, and organised crime Important methodologies including multi-dimensional scaling and the Radex approach as well as Social Network Analysis Geographical Offender Profiling, supported by detailed analysis of the underlying psychological processes that make this such a valuable investigative decision support tool The full range of investigative activities, including effective information collection, detecting deception and the development of decision support systems. In effect, this text introduces an exciting new paradigm for a wide range of psychological contributions to all forms of investigation within and outside of law enforcement. Each chapter has actual cases and quotations from offenders and ends with questions for discussion and research, making this a valuable text for undergraduate and postgraduate courses in Applied and Forensic Psychology, Criminology, Socio-Legal Studies and related disciplines.

Offender profiling is now viewed as an integral part of serious crime investigations by many law enforcement agencies across the world and continues to attract a high public and media profile. Despite almost three decades of research and developments in the field, the public impression of offender profiling is still influenced by misleading media portrayals, which fail to acknowledge the significant developments in theory, research and practice. This book is the only book on the market to illustrate in detail the actual practice of Behavioural Investigative Advice, its diversity in application, the underpinning academic literature and the remaining research questions and recommendations. Focussing on the professionalization of this developing discipline, it provides a fascinating insight into the modern role of a Behavioural Investigative Adviser, dispelling many of the myths still associated with offender profiling, and illustrating the continued aspiration of contemporary practitioners to adhere to the highest scientific standards. It provides a journey through the significant efforts to professionalise both the process and product of Behavioural Investigative Advice, supported by relevant theoretical, methodological and operational considerations. Edited by and containing contributions from some of the most respected and experienced researchers and practitioners working today, this book will be essential reading for Police Officers, researchers, students and anyone with an interest in the professionalization and contemporary contribution of forensic psychology to 21st century criminal investigation.

"'Criminal & Behavioral Profiling, ' written by well-established authors Curt and Anne Bartol, presents a realistic and empirically based look at the theory, research, and practice of modern criminal profiling, or, as it's more professionally termed, behavioral analysis or behavioral investigative analysis. Designed for use in a variety of criminal justice and psychology courses, the book delves into the process of identifying distinctive behavioral tendencies, geographical locations, demographic, and biographical descriptors of offenders, and personality traits, based on characteristics of the crime. Timely literature and case studies from the rapidly growing international research in criminal profiling help students understand the best practices, major pitfalls, and psychological concepts that are key to this process."--Back cover.

In this book, renowned profiler Dr. Richard Kocsis presents a distinct approach to profiling called Crime Action Profiling or CAP. The volume explains the scope and methodology employed in the studies that the author has undertaken over the past decade and a half. CAP adopts the view that profiling essentially represents a psychological technique that has its foundations in the disciplinary knowledge of forensic psychology.

Offender Profiling and Crime Analysis provides a highly readable account of the subject, and a picture of profiling which by no means accords with popular views and representations of what is involved. The book provides an overview of profiling techniques, offering some fascinating insights into the various approaches to profiling, and schools of thought, which have emerged − looking particularly at the work of the FBI, and of British and Dutch profilers.

Focused on Behavioral Evidence Analysis (BEA), a method of criminal profiling developed and refined by the author over the past 15 years, the fourth edition of Criminal Profiling maintains the same core foundation that made previous editions best sellers in the professional and academic community worldwide. Written from practicing behavioral analysts and aspiring students alike, this work emphasizes an honest understanding of crime and criminals. Newly updated, mechanisms for the examination and classification of both victim and offender behavior have been improved. In addition to refined approaches towards victimology, crime scene analysis, motivation and case linkage, a chapter on sexual deviance has been added as well. With prior edition in wide use as a primary text in criminal justice, law, criminology, and behavioral science programs around the world, Criminal Profiling, Fourth Edition remains essential for students and professionals alike. - Outlines the scientific principles and practice standards of BEA-oriented criminal profiling, with an emphasis on applying theory to real cases - Contributing authors from law enforcement, academic, mental health and forensic science communities provide a balance perspective - Complete glossary of key termsCompanion Web site includes all appendices from previous volumes and figure collection at http://www.elsevierdirect.com/companions/9780123852434 - Manual Web site provides an instructor's manual for each chapter, powerpoint slideshows, and case reports from Brent Turvey's work

George B. Palermo is Clinical Professor of Psychiatry and Neurology, Medical College of Wisconsin; Adjunct Professor of Criminology and Law Studies, Department of Cultural and Social Sciences, Marquette University; Director, Center for Forensic Psychiatry and Risk Assessment, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Most incidents of violent crime occur between people who know each other, but in other cases (fortunately much less frequent) there are no obvious ties between the victim and the criminal, and these cases cause a great deal of social fear and uncertainty. They also result in large-scale, costly investigations and, increasingly, police are collaborating with other professionals in a process of offender profiling which might help their investigation. This book is a substantial, unique and critical account of the scope and practice of offender profiling, and its limitations. Professionals worldwide, from psychiatry, psychology, criminology and policing, have contributed accounts of their experience and knowledge across a range of approaches to offender profiling. Some use a clinical approach, based on the application of established theories of personality and psychopathy. Others argue for the effectiveness of the objective analysis of offence records to predict future offending. Some of the police contributions provide a frank description of their methods, others address the difficult issues relating to the use of offender profiling. This is a controversial subject, full of potent myth, and the object of this book is to provide a cool overview of the related scientific knowledge, now spread over many journals and reports, as well as accounts of the process and difficulties of offender profiling. It will be useful and interesting to most scientists and professionals in the field of criminal justice. This book is in the Wiley Series in the Psychology of Crime, Policing and Law.

Geographical Offender Profiling (GOP) is the term that has emerged for the examination of where offences take place and the use of that examination to formulate views on the nature of the offender and where s/he might be based. As such, it has become the cornerstone of 'offender profiling'. By its nature, GOP bridges psychology, geography, criminology and forensic science and is of academic interest to all those disciplines as well as practical significance to police investigators. This book brings together a cross-section of the major papers published in the field that lay out the concepts and foundations of this area - including some widely quoted but difficult to obtain 'classic' papers - with an introduction that puts the papers into an overall context and a concluding extensive bibliography of the publications relevant to this rapidly growing area.