Welcome to CJ 325Psychology for Law Enforcement

Unit 7 Seminar

Welcome

• Just a reminder, your final essays and final project are both due at the end of unit 9!

• By now you should have looked over the requirements for both of these assignments and started to research to topics.

Seminar 7

• Are there any questions regarding current unit (7) or the Chapters for this unit (Chapters 15 or 16)?

Seminar Topic• Remember Dr. Alex Cross? He was a "police psychologist" in the movies

Kiss the Girls and Along Came a Spider. He was often seen profiling a case or chasing down the suspect with his gun drawn. This is a common, but inaccurate, portrayal of a criminal profiler. In this seminar, we will discuss this and other myths. Your text lists a number of roles a psychologist can serve in police departments, but those are not the only roles they can fill. We will discuss one in depth: criminal profiling. Society is most aware of this role from the news media, television, and movies. We will discuss the course of criminal profiling, consider its effectiveness in catching offenders, and debunk myths about its process.

• Prior to the seminar, read the article: "Criminal Profiling: The reality behind the myth," by Lea Winerman. It is available on the American Psychological Association website: http://www.apa.org/monitor/julaug04/criminal.html. Be prepared to discuss the true roles of psychologists in profiling crimes, and the reliability of profiling in catching offenders.

Profiling

• What is criminal profiling or psychological profiling?

Profiling

• What is criminal profiling or psychological profiling?

– The use of current case specific evidence to identify the statistically probable psychological characteristics and demographic variables of the offender, based on the information and behavioral patterns of prior crimes that are similar in nature.

Profiling

• What are some of the myths surrounding profiling?

– Think of some movies or television programs in which a “psychological profiler” is portrayed

Profiling

• Who are profilers?

• How does profiling work?

• When do we use profiling?

Profiling

• Who are profilers?– Typically profiling is in a team approach

• How does profiling work?

• When do we use profiling?

Profiling

• Who are profilers?– Typically profiling is in a team approach– Multiple disciplines are at work including:

• How does profiling work?

• When do we use profiling?

Profiling

• Who are profilers?– Typically profiling is in a team approach– Multiple disciplines are at work including:• Law enforcement officers and seasoned investigators

• How does profiling work?

• When do we use profiling?

Profiling

• Who are profilers?– Typically profiling is in a team approach– Multiple disciplines are at work including:• Law enforcement officers and seasoned investigators• Psychologists with experience and training in criminal

behaviors

• How does profiling work?

• When do we use profiling?

Profiling• Who are profilers?– Typically profiling is in a team approach– Multiple disciplines are at work including:

• Law enforcement officers and seasoned investigators• Psychologists with experience and training in criminal

behaviors• Researchers and other investigators such as CSI and

ballistics experts• How does profiling work?

• When do we use profiling?

Profiling

• Who are profilers?• How does profiling work?

• When do we use profiling?

Profiling

• Who are profilers?• How does profiling work?– We examine previous crimes and have a database

of many aspects of the crime

• When do we use profiling?

Profiling

• Who are profilers?• How does profiling work?– We examine previous crimes and have a database

of many aspects of the crime– We then look for similar crimes to the one we are

investigating and use statistically sound evidence to provide a compilation of variables that can narrow down the suspect pool

• When do we use profiling?

Profiling

• Who are profilers?• How does profiling work?• When do we use profiling?

Profiling

• Who are profilers?• How does profiling work?• When do we use profiling?– First and foremost in current cases in which we do

not have a identified suspect.

Profiling

• Who are profilers?• How does profiling work?• When do we use profiling?– First and foremost in current cases in which we do

not have a identified suspect.– Cold cases and ongoing cases in which leads have

gotten us no closer to a conclusion• Types of cases it might be used in

Profiling

• Who are profilers?• How does profiling work?• When do we use profiling?– First and foremost in current cases in which we do

not have a identified suspect.– Cold cases and ongoing cases in which leads have

gotten us no closer to a conclusion• Types of cases it might be used in

– Serial Murders

Profiling

• Who are profilers?• How does profiling work?• When do we use profiling?– First and foremost in current cases in which we do

not have a identified suspect.– Cold cases and ongoing cases in which leads have

gotten us no closer to a conclusion• Types of cases it might be used in

– Serial Murders– Mass Murders

Profiling

• Who are profilers?• How does profiling work?• When do we use profiling?– First and foremost in current cases in which we do not

have a identified suspect.– Cold cases and ongoing cases in which leads have

gotten us no closer to a conclusion• Types of cases it might be used in

– Serial Murders– Mass Murders– Spree Murders

Profiling• Who are profilers?• How does profiling work?• When do we use profiling?– First and foremost in current cases in which we do not

have a identified suspect.– Cold cases and ongoing cases in which leads have

gotten us no closer to a conclusion• Types of cases it might be used in

– Serial Murders– Mass Murders– Spree Murders– Any other case such as a one time murder, sex crime etc…

Profiling• Who are profilers?• How does profiling work?• When do we use profiling?

– First and foremost in current cases in which we do not have a identified suspect.

– Cold cases and ongoing cases in which leads have gotten us no closer to a conclusion• Types of cases it might be used in

– Serial Murders– Mass Murders– Spree Murders– Any other case such as a one time murder, sex crime etc…

– We must be careful where we use this technique as it can be costly and also not very good in cases where the research is not there for.

Profiling

Progression of today’s profiling strategies:– Jack the Ripper• Personality and predictions

– Son of Sam• Gender• Education• Family structure• Compared these to previous crimes to get a sense of

the person who might be doing the crime

Profiling

Progression of today’s profiling strategies:– Behavioral Science Unit

• FBI- John Douglas and Robert Ressler– Interviewed many serial killers

» Developed theories and categories from the interview information

• Continuation of the science by refining their theories through the information gathered in cases since.

– Profiling has gotten “easier” since 9/11/01• Sharing of information between agencies is encouraged

more and more information is shared.

Profiling

In the Winerman article it lists 4 phases for a typical murder:1. The antecedent2. The method and manner3. Body Disposal4. Post-offense behavior

Profiling

Profiling

What precautions do we need to take?– Do not overstep our boundaries– Work within the team– Never assume things (confirm it)– Use others information (FBI, Larger departments)– Get specialized training– Work in the field for a while before being part of a

team

Profiling

What are the strengths and weaknesses of profiling?

Profiling

Does profiling work?

– Think of one case where it was not accurate

– Think of one case where is was accurate

Additional Resources• Here is a link to a fun 9 question quiz on various issues

on profiling. It is not graded but I though it would be enjoyable to test your knowledge! Enjoy!

• investigation.discovery.com/investigation/quiz-central/law-enforcement/profiling.html

• This next link is to a website which deals with the question of “what I need to do to be a FBI profiler!” Enjoy the read!

• http://www.all-about-forensic-psychology.com/fbi-profiler.html

• Any last questions or concerns regarding the seminar, unit, or class?

End of Seminar

• Remember as always please email me at Mzucker@Kaplan.edu with any questions or concerns.