NCJ Number
224595
Journal
Criminal Justice and Behavior Volume: 35 Issue: 10 Dated: October 2008 Pages: 1257-1276
Date Published
October 2008
Length
20 pages
Annotation
This article argues that the belief that criminal profilers can predict a criminal’s characteristics from crime-scene evidence may be an illusion, as it explains how people may have been misled into a belief in criminal profiling (CP) without sound theoretical grounding and no strong empirical support for its reliability.
Abstract
The first section of the article reviews current knowledge of CP techniques, the frequency with which CP is used in criminal investigations, and the extent to which police officers and mental health professionals perceive CP as a valuable tool. The second section of the article argues that CP has no basis in scientific theory and only meager empirical support as an investigative tool. The third and fourth sections of the article address how the discrepancy may have arisen between the lack of supporting evidence for CP practices and prevalent beliefs about its effectiveness. The third section discusses some of the ways that information about CP is distorted, and the fourth section addresses some cognitive tendencies that are useful for learning and reasoning, but have apparently led police officers, criminal profilers, and the general public to embrace an illusory belief about CP. The fifth and concluding section of the article argues that CP should not be used as an investigative tool until adequate scientific support for its usefulness is forthcoming. 5 notes and 56 references