’It May Be True, but How's it Helping?’: UK Police Detectives' Views of the Operational Usefulness of Offender Profiling’

Abstract

This study utilised qualitative semi-structured interviews with 11 detectives from a single UK police force, in an attempt to understand if, how, and why offender profiling can be operationally useful to police officers. Although some positive opinions were expressed, overall this study found the detectives to be dissatisfied customers of the service of offender profilers. Common complaints included profiles widening the field of investigation to unmanageable proportions in terms of suspects and cases, not telling police anything that they did not already know, profilers breaching the Police and Criminal Evidence Act, and advice being simply common sense or too general. Police also reported feeling pressurised into continued use, despite their scepticism.

Themes in data mining, big data, and crime analytics

“…Two‐ thirds of group of UK police detectives when asked about the operational usefulness of offender profiling sample said that “The job's become about covering your back” (Gekoski & Gray, 2011). This fear of accountability is the polar opposite of employing a model for the betterment of service.…”

14. Psychology and criminal justice

“…In attempting to understand more about their operational utility, Gekoski and Gray (2011) conducted in depth interviews with 10 police officers with experience of profiling. They again gained a mixed picture: The most negative views tended to consider profiling to be fairly accurate, but of little operational usefulness as the profile…”