Criminal Profiling
- Atenea
- Nov 26, 2020
- 4 min read
We understand criminal profiling as, quoting: “the inference of the distinctive traits of offenders from physical and/or behavioral evidence” (Turvey, Criminal Profiling. An Introduction to Behavioral Evidence Analysis, Fundamentals, 2016). That is, it is not about physically describing an individual; instead, it aims to be an investigative tool that provides relevant data for the capture of the person who committed the crime, all based on clues found by the expert in the field, the criminal profiler.
The beginnings of criminal profiling are reflected through the Quantico Academy of the University of Behavioral Sciences (UCC), where a profile was created to provide an investigative team with information about an individual who had committed a certain crime (Genovéz, 2006).
However, profiling as such was born in the FBI in the 1950s, in a small group of investigators from the Behavioral Science Unit (BSU), which today is part of the National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime (NCAVC), under the direction of Roger Depue and tutelage of Howard Teten, Pat Mullany.
Later, the term “criminal profiling” was established in 1953, again at the FBI. Here, Robert K. Ressler, a former FBI agent, is one of the main global exponents of this Unit and the term.
Criminal profilers must be skeptical but not naive; that is, more than having an open mind, they must be careful not to allow theories from external agents (lawyers, police, civilians) to permeate and condition their expertise. If these theories are assumed to be true, there is a risk that skills will be limited, seeking only clues that support preconceived theories and discarding others, which leads to malpractice and lack of experience.
Furthermore, the criminal profiler should not only care about the individual who commits a crime, but also about the victim, because besides being a human being who deserves respect and professionalism from the expert, the victim is also a valuable source of information. Therefore, it is essential not to exclude them, as they are vital for both the physical description of the individual (in living victims) and the criminal act, as well as for achieving effective social prevention, thus reducing the number of possible victims.
The profiler’s loyalty is to justice, not to a person; that is, the expert’s efforts are not to serve a single individual, but to act as a bridge between the criminal act and prevention. This often includes questioning even their own hypotheses and theories. Analyzing implies being aware and patient with one’s own limitations, which must be known and understood to avoid basing conclusions on unfounded hunches. Intuitions are out of place.
Although criminal profiling alone does not solve cases (Porras, 2012), it is a tool that, when used by an expert with the correct professionalism, has great forensic potential. However, it is highly idealized and stereotyped by the general population, largely due to television, which makes people believe that any investigation can be solved in days or that a single hair will solve everything, as seen in series and movies. While it is true that the mind is educated, in the end, we are still human and, therefore, errors are part of the process. This does not mean mistakes are made constantly, but there is a margin for them. It is also a fact that these investigations are not carried out alone; timely help from other disciplines is very valuable during the profiling process (Turvey, Criminal Profiling. An Introduction to Behavioral Evidence Analysis, Fundamentals, 2016).
It is very important to mention that at the national level there are not many criminal profilers nor much trained personnel, which is a serious problem, since criminal acts do not stop and continue to evolve, adapting, especially now that, according to data from INEGI published on April 19, 2021, in the National Urban Public Security Survey, whose statistical purpose is the perception of insecurity among people over 18 years old, at the national level, 66.4% of them reported feeling unsafe in the city where they live. This proves that there is a real and urgent need for personnel to solve social problems in security and social prevention, as well as experts specialized in creating prevention strategies to help the population combat crime.
Human behaviors are inconsistent, malleable, and permeable to the social circumstances that surround them, so it is undeniable that as security professionals, we must also be in constant movement and learning to prevent antisocial behaviors from advancing.
References
Genovéz, V. G. (2006). El rastro del asesino: perfil psicolólogico de los criminales en la investiagción criminal. España: Ariel.
INEGI. (19 de abril de 2021). Encuesta Nacional de Seguridad Pública Urbana. Recuperado el 22 de junio de 2021, de https://www.inegi.org.mx/contenidos/saladeprensa/boletines/2021/ensu/ensu2021_04.pdf
Porras, J. F. (2012). La perfilación criminal. Técnica criminológica en el sistema acusatorio. Flores.
Ríos, J. (20 de agosto de 2016). Urgen en México psicólogos expertos en perfiles criminales para éxito del nuevo sistema penal. Recuperado el 17 de junio de 2021, de Universidad de Guadalajara: https://www.udg.mx/es/noticia/urgen-en-mexico-psicologos-expertos-en-perfiles-criminales-para-exito-de-nuevo-sistema-penal
Turvey, B. E. (2016). Perfilación criminal. Una introducción al análisis de la evidencia conductual, fundamentos (1° en español ed., Vol. I). (D. D. Cardona, Trad.) Aguascalientes, México: Forensic Press.
Turvey, B. E. (2016). Perfilación criminal: Una introducción a la evidencia conductual, práctica. (1° en español ed., Vol. III). (D. D. Meléndez, Trad.) Sitka & Aguascalientes, Alaska & México: Forensic Press.
