Forensic Psychology Week 1 Problems defining crime Ways of measuring crime Offender profiling

Problems defining crime Starter: From the flipped homework, answer the following questions: Why is historical context a problem when trying to define crime? Why is cultural context a problem when trying to define crime? What do we mean by the issues of circumstance? Give one example of crime that would link to the problems with historical context.

Answers What constitutes a crime also varies historically. The legal system changes its laws over time therefore some acts that would have been previously deemed to be a crime by the legal system is no longer illegal through a change in the law. Definitions of crime vary cross-culturally, meaning what is considered a crime in one culture may not be judged as such in another. There are circumstances in which the legal system can make allowances to take the situation and circumstance into account. Within the legal system there are two core elements that should be present for it to constitute a guilty act, or crime: Actus reus (the crime should be a voluntary act, meaning the person is in control of their behaviour)and Mens rea (the intention to do the crime, meaning the person who has committed the guilty act must also have intent to qualify it fully as a criminal act). Any examples that show how crimes have changed over time e.g. A parent’s right to smack their child was outlawed in 2004.

Problems defining crime - application In small groups: Read the examples on the ‘changing nature of crime’ sheet and discuss the question - ‘What does this example suggest about the nature of crime?’ Note your ideas down on a mini-whiteboard.

Ways of measuring crime Based on your knowledge from the flipped homework: In groups on the wallboards – Describe the three ways of measuring crime in as much detail as you can. Now, swap boards and read the descriptions – amend or/add to them

Evaluating the ways of measuring crime As a group, discuss the questions on the worksheet and write down your answers. Do not use your packs. You will have 10 minutes. Everyone should be prepared to feedback to the rest of the class at the end.

1.Farrington and Dowds (1985) found that police in Nottinghamshire were more likely than other regions to record thefts of under £10 and this explained an apparent ‘spike’ of thefts in this area. What do you think this suggests? Criticism – police priorities may distort figures 2. It is suggested that many crimes go unreported by victims or unrecorded by police. Why do you think this a problem and what do you think the possible reasons could be for this? Underestimates true extent of crime. Mistrust of police, victim fear, variations in police recording.

3.Police recorded crime figures only relate to notable offences (crimes that could possibly be tried by a jury) and exclude less serious/non-notifiable offences such as parking fines (usually dealt with in magistrates courts). Why do you think is this a problem? Doesn’t represent all crimes 4.What are the issues with using surveys to measure crime? Refer specifically to both victim surveys and offender surveys. Validity – self report therefore open to subjective responses and social desirability

5.Victim surveys are updated annually to keep up-to-date of trends and the emergence of new crimes. Why do you think this is an advantage? Temporal validity – attempts to include all crimes including new ones 6. Why do you think offender surveys could be useful? Could give insight into why they committed the crime.

Exam practice and essay planning Explain two problems in defining crime (6) Make a bullet pointed plan for the following question: Discuss ways of measuring crime (16)

Example answer The issue of historical context is one problem with defining crime. Definitions of crime vary cross-culturally, meaning what is considered a crime in one culture may not be judged as such in another. For example, In the UK having more than one wife is the crime of bigamy however it is not a crime in cultures where polygamy is practiced. The issue of cultural context is another problem with defining crime. The legal system changes its laws over time therefore some acts that would have been previously deemed to be a crime by the legal system is no longer illegal through a change in the law. For example, A parent’s right to smack their child was outlawed in 2004 with the introduction of the Children’s Act.

Bullet point plan ‘Outline’ = what these are, details on how data is gathered etc. ‘Evaluate’ = strengths and/or limitations Structure: Paragraph 1: Outline - official stats Evaluate – 2 points (PES) Paragraph 2: Outline – victim surveys Paragraph 3: Outline – offender surveys Evaluate – 1 point (PES)

Offender profiling – Top down Constructing of a profile Based on your knowledge from the flipped homework: On whiteboards - Match the headings with the descriptions. Then decide where the headings should go on the flowchart. You have 5mins. Now you know the correct order, write them onto the flowchart sheet.

Offender profiling – Top down Based on your knowledge from the flipped homework, read the following two case studies and decide whether you would classify them as ‘organised’ or ‘disorganised’. You will need to justify your decisions – try to refer back to the characteristics of each type of offender.

Organised or disorganised? Case one A teenage victim was attacked in the morning on a secluded path that is very rarely used. She was seized from behind, dragged into some bushes, gagged and bound with duct tape, and sexually assaulted. The path cannot be seen from nearby roads, and can only be accessed from an estate on one side. The victim had unexpectedly spent the night at a friend's house and had not used the path before. Explain your answer.

Organised or disorganised? Case two Between 1986 and 1988, seven attacks on elderly women took place in tower blocks in Birmingham. Women in their 70's and 80's often infirm, were followed into the lifts by a stocky young man who took them to the top floor of the tower block. He would rape the women and then flee. Consistent patterns seemed to suggest the same man was responsible. In his interactions with the women he appeared confident and at ease. He made no attempt to disguise himself and forensic evidence was found on each occasion. Police eventually arrested Adrian Babb, an attendant at the local swimming pool, to which all of Babb's victims were regular visitors. Explain your answer.

Evaluation of the Top-down approach to offender profiling On the next slide are the two cases you just looked at. How do both of these cases illustrate some of the problems with the Top-down approach to offender profiling?

Case one A teenage victim was attacked in the morning on a secluded path that is very rarely used. She was seized from behind, dragged into some bushes, gagged and bound with duct tape, and sexually assaulted. The path cannot be seen from nearby roads, and can only be accessed from an estate on one side. The victim had unexpectedly spent the night at a friend's house and had not used the path before. Case two Between 1986 and 1988, seven attacks on elderly women took place in tower blocks in Birmingham. Women in their 70's and 80's often infirm, were followed into the lifts by a stocky young man who took them to the top floor of the tower block. He would rape the women and then flee. Consistent patterns seemed to suggest the same man was responsible. In his interactions with the women he appeared confident and at ease. He made no attempt to disguise himself and forensic evidence was found on each occasion. Police eventually arrested Adrian Babb, an attendant at the local swimming pool, to which all of Babb's victims were regular visitors. Shows how difficult it is to distinguish between organised and disorganised – may be some overlap

Evaluation of the Top-down approach to offender profiling Based on your knowledge of the top-down approach, can you think of any more problems with it? (hint: think about how the FBI came up with the approach)

Did you get any of these? Only applies to certain crimes Original sample which helped to create categories was very limited Too simplistic

Exam practice On the wallboards answer the following question: Outline two limitations of the Top-down approach to offender profiling (6) Remember to use P.E.S!

E.G. One limitation of the top-down approach to profiling is that it only applies to certain crimes for example murder and rape. More common offences such as burglary do not lend themselves to profiling because the resulting crime reveals very little about the offender. This restricts it's applicability to all crimes which means it can be seen as a limited approach to identifying a criminal. Another limitation is that having two categories of a criminal is very simplistic. It is likely that criminals do not fit neatly into either category, therefore making the prediction of their characteristics difficult. It is likely there will be more types, and the distinction is too restrictive. This ultimately affects the accuracy of the profiling system.

Offender profiling: Bottom-up approach Let’s see what you have learnt from your flipped homework https://quizlet.com/_325ci5

Offender profiling: Bottom-up approach Geographical profiling Real case of burglary https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lChVZzDV3ME Jack the Ripper geographic profiling: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QCdskRH-B6s

Evaluation of the Bottom-up approach Scientific basis Wide practical applications In groups – discuss why you think these are strengths of bottom-up profiling

Evaluation of the Bottom-up approach Elaboration ladder Some supporting evidence has been given to you so try to complete the rest of the ladder for those points. Also, think about what you have just discussed in groups and elaborate as far as you can on the ladder.

Evaluation of the Bottom-up approach Copson (1995) surveyed 48 police forces and found that the advice provided by the profiler was judged to be 'useful' in 83% of cases, but in only 3% did it lead to accurate identification of the offender. The Rachel Nickell case. Using the study above (Copson) and the Rachel Nickell case: What problems do you think there are with using the Bottom-up approach?

Comparing Top-down and Bottom-up approaches to profiling core It is possible you could be asked to compare the approaches to profiling so let’s have a look at the similarities and/or differences between the 2 approaches. E.G. Although both approaches are used to help police identify potential suspects there are mixed results on the effectiveness of both approaches to offender profiling Click on the QR code and complete one of the activity sheets on comparing the two approaches to profiling. Make your choice (Core, Extend or Challenge) based on how confident you think you would be at comparing the two approaches. extend challenge