The effectiveness of psychological profiles

Trager, Jennifer; Brewster, JoAnne

doi:10.1007/bf02802730

Cited by 16 publications

(17 citation statements)

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“…The collections of the opinions of detectives regarding the utility of offender profiling all yield more positive results. In studies conducted in the Netherlands (Jackson, Kopen, & Herbrink, 1993), United Kingdom (Copson, 1995), United States (Trager & Brewster, 2001), Canada (Snook, Haines, Taylor, & Bennell, 2007) and Australia (Goldsworthy, 2001), the feedback received was overwhelmingly positive with a significant proportion of surveyed police officers finding profiling useful to varying degrees and declaring themselves prepared to seek advice again. Preliminary explorations of how profiling assisted investigations suggest that it is deemed most useful to identify interrogation strategies, while the identification of a suspect appears to be the investigative goal least assisted by profiling (Trager & Brewster, 2001).…”

Section: Validity Measurement Dilemmamentioning

confidence: 99%

Questioning the validity of criminal profiling: an evidence-based approach

Chifflet

2014

Australian & New Zealand Journal of Criminology

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Criminal profiling is used in complex investigations, and, in a number of jurisdictions, as expert evidence in criminal trials. This article seeks to move beyond the many anecdotal accounts of success by profilers and examine the evidence available as to the discipline's validity. As it stands, profiling is based on theories that are uncertain at best, and little research has been undertaken to assess the actual accuracy of generated profiles. This absence of validation is in part due to genuine difficulties associated with designing appropriate testing models. It is exacerbated by the reluctance of profilers to engage in such a process, relying instead on the well-rehearsed, yet somewhat circular argument that the continuing demand for profiling advice is in itself reassuring evidence of the method's validity. It is the lack of objective evidence of validity in this area that will be critically considered in this article.

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Section: Validity Measurement Dilemmamentioning

confidence: 99%

Questioning the validity of criminal profiling: an evidence-based approach

Chifflet

2014

Australian & New Zealand Journal of Criminology

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“…When a particular type of crime is focused on, it is most likely to be homicide, followed by serial homicide and rape. This finding makes sense given that profiling appears to be used most often for these types of interpersonal crimes (Holmes and Holmes 2002;Trager and Brewster 2001). It will be interesting to see over the next few years how this emphasis changes given that some individuals have recently provided persuasive arguments that offender profiling is just as plausible for property crimes, such as arson and burglary (Canter and Alison 2000;Canter and Fritzon 1998).…”

Section: What Type Of Information Is Reported and How Is It Conveyed?mentioning

confidence: 85%

Advances in Offender Profiling: A Systematic Review of the Profiling Literature Published Over the Past Three Decades

Dowden

Bennell

Bloomfield

2007

J Police Crim Psych

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Despite the immense popularity of offender profiling as both a topic of fascination for the general public as well as an academic field of study, concerns have been raised about the development of this area of scientific inquiry. The present study provides a preliminary step towards moving the field forward as it reviews the type and quality of studies dealing with offender profiling over the past 31 years. Based on a content analysis of 132 published articles, the review indicates that researchers investigating this phenomenon rarely publish multiple articles, and they are generally reported across many different journals, thereby making knowledge synthesis and knowledge transfer problematic. In addition, the majority of papers published in the area are discussion pieces (e.g., discussing what profiling is, how profiles are constructed, and when profiling is useful), despite the fact that the processes underlying offender profiling are still not well understood. Finally, although peer-reviewed articles exploring this topic have steadily increased, the statistical sophistication of these studies is sorely lacking, with most including no statistics or formal analyses of data. Suggestions for future research and recommendations to streamline efforts in this field are provided based on the results of this review.

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“…However, profiling was judged operationally useful in the majority of cases through, for example, providing an expert opinion or furthering understanding of the offender. In the US, also using a survey method, Trager and Brewster (2001) found that the most helpful parts of profiles for officers were predictions about the psychological needs, level of education and mental state of the offender, and advice on interrogation style. While in Canada, using structured interviews with police officers, Snook, Haines, Taylor, and Bennell (2007) found that the majority judged profiling to be operationally useful, through, for example, opening new lines of inquiry.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This is not to say, however, that all police officers were satisfied with all profiles, provided by all profilers, all of the time. Thus it is important to note that the generally positive comments were tempered by concerns and criticisms levelled at profiling, including profiles: not providing any new information, being too general, being of insufficient practical use (Jackson et al, 1993), hindering the identification of a suspect (Trager & Brewster, 2001), and even misdirecting an investigation (Snook et al, 2007).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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

Gekoski

Gray

2011

International Journal of Police Science & Management

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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.

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The effectiveness of psychological profiles

Cited by 16 publications

References 0 publications

Questioning the validity of criminal profiling: an evidence-based approach

Questioning the validity of criminal profiling: an evidence-based approach

Advances in Offender Profiling: A Systematic Review of the Profiling Literature Published Over the Past Three Decades

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

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