Forensic Psychology
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- Created by: claudia.lister
- Created on: 22-10-20 13:01
problems in defining crime - cultural issues
Actions considered a crime in one culture are sometimes not classed as a crime in another culture.
Having more than one wife is a crime in the UK (bigamy), but in some cultures, this would not be seen as a crime (polygamy).
Having more than one wife is a crime in the UK (bigamy), but in some cultures, this would not be seen as a crime (polygamy).
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historical issues
Definitions of crime change over time.
homosexuality was a crime until 1967 in the UK, and remains a crime in many Asian and African countries.
homosexuality was a crime until 1967 in the UK, and remains a crime in many Asian and African countries.
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official statistics
government records of numbers of crimes reported to the police and recorded in official figures.
published annually by the Home Office.
used by the government as information which can help to develop crime prevention strategies.
published annually by the Home Office.
used by the government as information which can help to develop crime prevention strategies.
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evaluation of official statistics
may underestimate the extent of crime.
only include reported crimes, which may be only around 25% of the total crimes committed (the remaining 75% is known as the ‘dark figure’). Of these, they only include recorded crimes.
some police forces may not
only include reported crimes, which may be only around 25% of the total crimes committed (the remaining 75% is known as the ‘dark figure’). Of these, they only include recorded crimes.
some police forces may not
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victim surveys
ask victims about their experience of crime.
in the UK 50,000 randomly selected households take part in the ‘Crime Survey for England and Wales’ each year.
the Office for National Statistics uses the results of the survey to detect trends and patterns.
in the UK 50,000 randomly selected households take part in the ‘Crime Survey for England and Wales’ each year.
the Office for National Statistics uses the results of the survey to detect trends and patterns.
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evaluation of victim surveys
can be more accurate than official statistics, as they include crimes not reported to the police. the information gained may be more trustworthy.
rely on memory and self-report, which can be unreliable. participants may not remember when the crime took p
rely on memory and self-report, which can be unreliable. participants may not remember when the crime took p
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offender surveys
record examples of crimes through asking offenders to give details about crimes they have committed.
groups of likely offenders are often used, based on risk factors such as background, past offences and so on.
example was the ‘Offender Crime and Justic
groups of likely offenders are often used, based on risk factors such as background, past offences and so on.
example was the ‘Offender Crime and Justic
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evaluation of offender surveys
insight is provided into how many people are involved in the committing of a crime.
Participants may not be honest, they may under-report criminal actions, or over-report them for reasons of bravado. data may not be accurate.
certain types of crime (mid
Participants may not be honest, they may under-report criminal actions, or over-report them for reasons of bravado. data may not be accurate.
certain types of crime (mid
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offender profiling
aims to creating a list of likely suspects for a crime, by narrowing down the possible field of perpetrators.
done by professional profilers and the police, who use evidence and the crime scene to generate hypotheses about the characteristics of the kill
done by professional profilers and the police, who use evidence and the crime scene to generate hypotheses about the characteristics of the kill
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top down approach
characteristics of the crime, and the likely offender, is matched to a pre-existing ‘template’, provided by the FBI.
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top down approach 2
a murder could be classified as ‘organised’ or ‘disorganised’. used to guide police investigations. The templates suggest that the criminal has a particular way of working (‘modus operandi’ or ‘MO’), which correlates with an aspect of their personality, o
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organised offenders
advanced planning
‘choose’ particular victims.
work in an emotionally detached way
leave little evidence
intelligent
in skilled professional occupations.
display normal social and sexual behaviour.
‘choose’ particular victims.
work in an emotionally detached way
leave little evidence
intelligent
in skilled professional occupations.
display normal social and sexual behaviour.
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disorganised offenders
not pre-planned
spur of the moment
more evidence is left behind
lower IQs
be in unskilled work (or unemployed)
have histories of psychological and/or sexual dysfunction
live alone.
spur of the moment
more evidence is left behind
lower IQs
be in unskilled work (or unemployed)
have histories of psychological and/or sexual dysfunction
live alone.
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constructing FBI profile
data assimilation: reviewing the available evidence
crime scene classification: organised or disorganised
crime reconstruction: a hypothesis of what happened
profile generation: a hypothesis of the characteristics of the likely offender- background, perso
crime scene classification: organised or disorganised
crime reconstruction: a hypothesis of what happened
profile generation: a hypothesis of the characteristics of the likely offender- background, perso
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evaluation of top down approach
works best for particular types of crime, such as murder, ****, torture etc.
work much less well for crimes such as burglary, top-down approach can only be properly used for certain crimes.
relies on the prediction that personality characteristics remai
work much less well for crimes such as burglary, top-down approach can only be properly used for certain crimes.
relies on the prediction that personality characteristics remai
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bottom up approach
developed in the UK by David Canter.
aim is to generate a profile of the offender by looking at the available evidence.
no fixed ‘typologies’ (as in the US system) that will be attempted to be matched to the offender. Instead, a profile should emerge s
aim is to generate a profile of the offender by looking at the available evidence.
no fixed ‘typologies’ (as in the US system) that will be attempted to be matched to the offender. Instead, a profile should emerge s
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investigative psychology
attempt to use statistical procedures and psychological theory.
statistics are used to create a prediction of behaviour that is likely to occur in crimes.
specific details of an offence are matched to this to create details about the offender.
statistics are used to create a prediction of behaviour that is likely to occur in crimes.
specific details of an offence are matched to this to create details about the offender.
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investigative psychology 2
idea of ‘interpersonal coherence’ is key- how the offender acts during the crime is likely to relate to their actions in non-criminal situations.
a murderer who leaves a very neat and tidy crime scene may be obsessively neat and tidy in everyday life.
a murderer who leaves a very neat and tidy crime scene may be obsessively neat and tidy in everyday life.
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investigative psychology 3
significance of the time and place of the crime is also considered, as is ‘forensic awareness’, where it is considered how much the offender has attempted to cover their tracks- this indicates they may have been questioned about crimes before.
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geographical profiling
Rossmo (1997) proposed this method.
involves looking at the location of crimes which seem to have been committed by the same offender (‘crime mapping’).
hypotheses can be generated about what the offender is thinking, how they like to operate, where the
involves looking at the location of crimes which seem to have been committed by the same offender (‘crime mapping’).
hypotheses can be generated about what the offender is thinking, how they like to operate, where the
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canter's 2 models
the marauder - operates in close proximity to their home, or an equivalent ‘base’.
he commuter - travels a distance away from their residence.
patterns of offending usually form circles around an offender’s residence, and this can give insights into w
he commuter - travels a distance away from their residence.
patterns of offending usually form circles around an offender’s residence, and this can give insights into w
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evaluation of bottom up approach
Canter and Heritage (1990) found that when looking at a particular type of crime (sexual assault), the nature of the offence was correlated with particular types of behaviour (such as the use of impersonal language).
suggests that statistical techniques
suggests that statistical techniques
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evaluation of bottom up approach 2
Lundrigan and Cantor (2001) found that, in 120 murder cases involving serial killers, the killer disposed of bodies in various locations, which formed ‘centres of gravity’, and their base or residence was always located in the middle of this. this support
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evaluation of bottom up approach 3
bottom-up approaches could be argued to be more scientific than top-down, as just the available evidence (alongside statistical analysis and predictions) are used to create a profile, rather than attempting to fit offenders to pre-exiting templates.
this
this
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atavistic form
Lombroso argued that criminals were genetic throwbacks.
meaning that they were more primitive than non-offenders, and were unsuited to living in civilised society.
seen as a ‘sub-species’ of humanity.
these ideas helped to move explanations for criminal
meaning that they were more primitive than non-offenders, and were unsuited to living in civilised society.
seen as a ‘sub-species’ of humanity.
these ideas helped to move explanations for criminal
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atavistic characteristics
narrow, sloping brow
prominent jaw
high cheekbones
facial asymmetry
physical irregularities such as extra toes/fingers
prominent jaw
high cheekbones
facial asymmetry
physical irregularities such as extra toes/fingers
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lombroso
studied the heads and faces of hundreds of convicts in his native Italy, concluding that (of 383 dead and 3839 living criminals studied), 40% of all criminal acts could be accounted for by atavistic characteristics.
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evaluation of atavistic form
Lombardo’s theories were the first attempt to explain criminal behaviours in a more scientific (rather than moralistic) way, by considering physiology and genetics.
this helped pave the way for further investigation into evolutionary and biological expla
this helped pave the way for further investigation into evolutionary and biological expla
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evaluation of atavistic form 2
Lombroso’s work has been accused of racism, as many of the atavistic features (dark skin, curly hair) are also features of people of African descent.
the danger in accepting these theories would be that they could be used to support selective breeding (
the danger in accepting these theories would be that they could be used to support selective breeding (
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evaluation of atavistic form 3
Goring (1913) found that, when comparing 3000 criminals with 3000 non-criminals, there was no evidence of particular physical characteristics amongst criminals, weakening the suggestion that it is possible to identify potential offenders just by sight.
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genetic explanations
suggest that particular genes, or combinations of them, are associated with criminal behaviour.
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lange and christiansen - genetic explanations
Lange (1930) looked at 13 identical (MZ) and 17 non-identical (DZ) twins, where one twin in each pair had served time in prison. 10 of the MZ twins, and only 2 of the DZ twins, had a co-twin also in prison, suggesting a genetic basis for criminal behaviou
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candidate genes
Tiihonen et al (2014) found that the MAOA gene (which is linked to dopamine and serotonin and aggressive behaviour) and the CDH13 gene (linked to attention deficit disorder) may be associated with violent crime, although the findings have yet to be replic
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diathesis stress model
the tendency for criminal behaviour may be established genetically, but it is likely that an environmental ‘trigger’, such as a traumatic or dysfunctional childhood, is needed to cause the criminal behaviour.
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neural explanations
these consider how the structure and workings of the brain may be linked with criminal behaviour.
individuals diagnosed with antisocial personality disorder (APD) may have a neural explanation for their condition.
APD is characterised by lack of empath
individuals diagnosed with antisocial personality disorder (APD) may have a neural explanation for their condition.
APD is characterised by lack of empath
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prefrontal cortex
Raine has found through conducting brain imaging studies that individuals with antisocial personalities have reduced activity in the brain’s prefrontal cortex.
in a 2000 study, it was found that individuals with APD had 11% less brain matter in the prefr
in a 2000 study, it was found that individuals with APD had 11% less brain matter in the prefr
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mirror neurons
Keysers et al (2011) found that when criminals were asked to empathise with someone on film experiencing pain, the empathy reaction (controlled by mirror neurons) activated.
this suggests that those with APD are capable of empathy, but it is a process th
this suggests that those with APD are capable of empathy, but it is a process th
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evaluation of neural explanations
Twin studies often use very small sample sizes, and early examples such as Lange’s may not have been well-controlled, therefore reducing the validity of findings. This is made more problematic by the fact that twins share environments, so any similarity c
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evaluation of neural explanations
Mednick (1984) found that, of 13,000 Danish adoptees, 13.5% of those who did not have a biological parent with a criminal conviction had convictions themselves.
one biological parent with a criminal conviction, 20% had conviction themselves.
one biological parent with a criminal conviction, 20% had conviction themselves.
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evaluation of neural explanations
two parents with a criminal conviction, 24.5% had a conviction themselves.
supports that there may be a genetic basis for criminal behaviour, which is moderated by the environment (supporting diathesis-stress).
supports that there may be a genetic basis for criminal behaviour, which is moderated by the environment (supporting diathesis-stress).
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evaluation of neural explanations
biological explanations are determinist, suggesting that criminals do not have free will over their behaviour.
has implications for criminal responsibility, as a genetic factor could be used as a defence in cases of crime.
raises ethical questions as to
has implications for criminal responsibility, as a genetic factor could be used as a defence in cases of crime.
raises ethical questions as to
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Other cards in this set
Card 2
Front
Definitions of crime change over time.
homosexuality was a crime until 1967 in the UK, and remains a crime in many Asian and African countries.
homosexuality was a crime until 1967 in the UK, and remains a crime in many Asian and African countries.
Back
historical issues
Card 3
Front
government records of numbers of crimes reported to the police and recorded in official figures.
published annually by the Home Office.
used by the government as information which can help to develop crime prevention strategies.
published annually by the Home Office.
used by the government as information which can help to develop crime prevention strategies.
Back
Card 4
Front
may underestimate the extent of crime.
only include reported crimes, which may be only around 25% of the total crimes committed (the remaining 75% is known as the ‘dark figure’). Of these, they only include recorded crimes.
some police forces may not
only include reported crimes, which may be only around 25% of the total crimes committed (the remaining 75% is known as the ‘dark figure’). Of these, they only include recorded crimes.
some police forces may not
Back
Card 5
Front
ask victims about their experience of crime.
in the UK 50,000 randomly selected households take part in the ‘Crime Survey for England and Wales’ each year.
the Office for National Statistics uses the results of the survey to detect trends and patterns.
in the UK 50,000 randomly selected households take part in the ‘Crime Survey for England and Wales’ each year.
the Office for National Statistics uses the results of the survey to detect trends and patterns.
Back
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