Forensics Content
O ender Pro ling
❥ Behaviour & analytical tool used to help narrow the eld of inquiry to a list of likely
suspects by predicting the characteristics of a criminal
TOP-DOWN APPROACH:
❥ Looks carefully at crime scene & draws conclusions from evidence about the o ender -
builds pro le of what o ender is likely to be like
❥ Criminals classi ed as ‘organised’ or ‘unorganised’
❥ Organised: high IQ, attempts to clear up, carefully planned
❥ Disorganised: opposite
❥ Based on qualitative information eg. interviews
❥ Only used for extreme crimes eg. rape/murder
BOTTOM-UP APPROACH:
❥ Uses investigative psychology and geographical pro ling
❥ Based on quantitive data eg. statistics
❥ Can be used for extreme and less extreme crimes
INVESTIGATIVE PSYCHOLOGY:
❥ Uses computed databases & small space analysis (identi es correlations across
patterns of behaviour to see if a series of o ences are linked)
❥ Assumes interpersonal coherence (exhibited behaviour of o ender while committing
o ence same have behaviour irl)
❥ Time & place also considered as it may indicate where the o ender is living
Biological Explanations
ATAVISTIC FORM:
❥ Early biological explanation proposed that criminals are a sub-species of genetic
throwbacks that cannot conform to the rules of modern society (suggested by
Lambroso)
❥ Distinguishable by particular facial & cranial characteristics
❥ O enders lack evolutionary development so their savage & untamed nature makes them
unable to t in to society so they turn to crime
❥ Claims that criminals often have strong jaw, high cheekbones, dark skin, extra toes,
nipples & ngers
❥ These characteristics can be subdivided:
- Murderers have bloodshot eyes, curly hair & long ears
- Sexual deviants have glinting eyes & swollen eshy lips
GENETICS/NEUROCHEMISTRY:
❥ Claims that criminality is inherited
❥ Neural di erences between criminals & non-criminals
❥ Eg. reduced prefrontal cortex and mirror neurons
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, Psychological Explanations
EYESENCK’S PERSONALITY INVENTORY:
❥ Psychological test which locates respondents along the extraversion & neuroticism
dimensions to determine personality type
❥ Suggests a genetic predisposition to a particular personality, but environmental factors
play a role too
❥ There are three personality types:
- Extroverts (sociable impulsive, risk-taking)
- Neurotics (nervous, anxious, obsessive)
- Psychotics (insensitive, unconventional, lacks conscience)
❥ If score highly on all three = neurotic extrovert (can’t be easily conditioned, are cold,
unfeeling & likely to engage in o ending behaviour)
❥ People with high E & N have nervous systems which make it di cult to condition
therefore they don’t easily learn to respond to anti-social impulses & therefore likely to
act anti-socially in situation where criminal opportunity presents itself
KOHLBERG’S THEORY:
❥ Criminals have a lower level of moral reasoning
❥ They don’t progress from pre-conventional level of moral reasoning (seek to avoid
punishment & gain rewards)
❥ Have child-like reasoning (may commit crimes if they can gain rewards)
❥ Non-criminals reason at a higher level & sympathise with the rights of others, exhibiting
honesty & non-violence (post conventional)
COGNITIVE DISTORTIONS:
❥ Biases in peoples information processing so they perceive others inaccurately and have
a faulty thinking system
❥ Hostile attribution bias - likelyhood of violence associated with tendency to misinterpret
actions of others and perceive others as aggressive when they’re not (eg. committing
crime because the victim ‘looked at them funny’)
❥ Minimisation - downplaying the seriousness of their o ending behaviour (eg. burglar
saying they commit o ence to provide for family)
DIFFERENTIAL ASSOCIATION:
❥ Criminal behaviour is learnt through association & interaction with others
❥ Criminal takes on their attitudes, values & techniques to commit o ence
❥ Not due to biology, personality, ethnic background etc
❥ Crimes learnt through agents of socialisation eg. family
Psychodynamic Explanations
❥ Superego developed at age 5 in phallic stage after electra/oedipus complex
❥ Superego punishes ego with guilt for immoral behaviour & pride for moral behaviour
(morality principle)
WEAK SUPEREGO:
❥ Same sex parent absent during phallic stage means child can’t internalise same sex
parent’s moral standards because they can’t identify with them
❥ Makes immoral/criminal behaviour more likely
ff ff ff ffi ff
O ender Pro ling
❥ Behaviour & analytical tool used to help narrow the eld of inquiry to a list of likely
suspects by predicting the characteristics of a criminal
TOP-DOWN APPROACH:
❥ Looks carefully at crime scene & draws conclusions from evidence about the o ender -
builds pro le of what o ender is likely to be like
❥ Criminals classi ed as ‘organised’ or ‘unorganised’
❥ Organised: high IQ, attempts to clear up, carefully planned
❥ Disorganised: opposite
❥ Based on qualitative information eg. interviews
❥ Only used for extreme crimes eg. rape/murder
BOTTOM-UP APPROACH:
❥ Uses investigative psychology and geographical pro ling
❥ Based on quantitive data eg. statistics
❥ Can be used for extreme and less extreme crimes
INVESTIGATIVE PSYCHOLOGY:
❥ Uses computed databases & small space analysis (identi es correlations across
patterns of behaviour to see if a series of o ences are linked)
❥ Assumes interpersonal coherence (exhibited behaviour of o ender while committing
o ence same have behaviour irl)
❥ Time & place also considered as it may indicate where the o ender is living
Biological Explanations
ATAVISTIC FORM:
❥ Early biological explanation proposed that criminals are a sub-species of genetic
throwbacks that cannot conform to the rules of modern society (suggested by
Lambroso)
❥ Distinguishable by particular facial & cranial characteristics
❥ O enders lack evolutionary development so their savage & untamed nature makes them
unable to t in to society so they turn to crime
❥ Claims that criminals often have strong jaw, high cheekbones, dark skin, extra toes,
nipples & ngers
❥ These characteristics can be subdivided:
- Murderers have bloodshot eyes, curly hair & long ears
- Sexual deviants have glinting eyes & swollen eshy lips
GENETICS/NEUROCHEMISTRY:
❥ Claims that criminality is inherited
❥ Neural di erences between criminals & non-criminals
❥ Eg. reduced prefrontal cortex and mirror neurons
ffff fffi fi fi ff ff fl fifi fi ffff ff
, Psychological Explanations
EYESENCK’S PERSONALITY INVENTORY:
❥ Psychological test which locates respondents along the extraversion & neuroticism
dimensions to determine personality type
❥ Suggests a genetic predisposition to a particular personality, but environmental factors
play a role too
❥ There are three personality types:
- Extroverts (sociable impulsive, risk-taking)
- Neurotics (nervous, anxious, obsessive)
- Psychotics (insensitive, unconventional, lacks conscience)
❥ If score highly on all three = neurotic extrovert (can’t be easily conditioned, are cold,
unfeeling & likely to engage in o ending behaviour)
❥ People with high E & N have nervous systems which make it di cult to condition
therefore they don’t easily learn to respond to anti-social impulses & therefore likely to
act anti-socially in situation where criminal opportunity presents itself
KOHLBERG’S THEORY:
❥ Criminals have a lower level of moral reasoning
❥ They don’t progress from pre-conventional level of moral reasoning (seek to avoid
punishment & gain rewards)
❥ Have child-like reasoning (may commit crimes if they can gain rewards)
❥ Non-criminals reason at a higher level & sympathise with the rights of others, exhibiting
honesty & non-violence (post conventional)
COGNITIVE DISTORTIONS:
❥ Biases in peoples information processing so they perceive others inaccurately and have
a faulty thinking system
❥ Hostile attribution bias - likelyhood of violence associated with tendency to misinterpret
actions of others and perceive others as aggressive when they’re not (eg. committing
crime because the victim ‘looked at them funny’)
❥ Minimisation - downplaying the seriousness of their o ending behaviour (eg. burglar
saying they commit o ence to provide for family)
DIFFERENTIAL ASSOCIATION:
❥ Criminal behaviour is learnt through association & interaction with others
❥ Criminal takes on their attitudes, values & techniques to commit o ence
❥ Not due to biology, personality, ethnic background etc
❥ Crimes learnt through agents of socialisation eg. family
Psychodynamic Explanations
❥ Superego developed at age 5 in phallic stage after electra/oedipus complex
❥ Superego punishes ego with guilt for immoral behaviour & pride for moral behaviour
(morality principle)
WEAK SUPEREGO:
❥ Same sex parent absent during phallic stage means child can’t internalise same sex
parent’s moral standards because they can’t identify with them
❥ Makes immoral/criminal behaviour more likely
ff ff ff ffi ff
