International Perspectives into the Practice and Research of Criminal Profiling Today criminal profiling is no longer viewed as some secretive, mysterious technique that police from the United States of America exc- sively indulge in when seeking to solve high-profile aberrant forms of crime. Although popular culture representations of criminal profiling still mostly favor such depictions by emphasizing this context, the reality is that individuals from a range of occupational and disciplinary backgrounds from around the world are involved in the practice loosely referred to as “criminal profiling. ” Different nomenclature is adopted from time to time to describe essentially the same practice such as “offender profiling,” “psychological profiling,” “pers- ality profiling,” and “crime analysis,” and indeed different techniques are often employed, but nonetheless as an endeavor profiling has expanded both in app- cation and in popularity across the world. Criminal profiling has evolved chiefly because researchers and comm- tators from around the globe have spent many years examining the perpetrators of serious crimes such as murder, rape, and arson. In particular, they have concentrated their efforts on studying the motivations and actions of violent offenders while seeking to document the experiences of both the victims and the perpetrators of crime. Many have also sought to assess the input of inv- tigative experience employed in criminal investigations and the influence of expert witnesses on jury decisions and examined at length the assessment and treatment of the protagonists of crime.
The technique commonly referred to as ‘criminal profiling’ is one in which crime behaviours are evaluated to predict the likely attributes of an offender. In practice, the technique has enjoyed steady growth and interest over the past three decades. The present volume draws together research from scholars and practitioners from across the globe that examines from a range of multidisciplinary perspectives the use, application and value of this form of profiling.
The material canvassed throughout this text not only examines research and theoretical principles for the assessment of crimes, but extends to exploring the range of issues facing the theoretical development of criminal profiling and its practical, legal and professional practice. Topics include the examination of homicidal syndromes, the association of crime scene behavior patterns with offender characteristics, criminal propensity and opportunity, the identification of crimes committed by the same offender, the legal admissibility of profiling, its accuracy, and the problems confronting the contemporary practice of criminal profiling. This volume is likely to become an essential reference for forensic practitioners and students alike operating in the fields of criminology, law and policing and anyone with a genuine interest in the investigation and resolution of violent crime.
