Contemporary and Critical Analyses of the Approaches to Offender Profiling (2009)

Offender profiling is an investigative technique that analyses a crime so as to gain information about an offender. The ‘profile’ that is created on the offender incorporates many factors such as personality and behaviour. There a several major approaches to this technique that have formed from many different disciplines. These approaches are the North American Approaches, Actuarial Approaches, Clinical Approaches, and the Dutch Approach, and are all critically analysed within this dissertation.

Along with individual analyses of these approaches, this discussion also focuses on comparing each with one another and attempts are made to single out the most successful and accurate approach. Concluding comments find this extremely difficult to achieve because of the broad distinctions that offender profiling incorporates. Many different aspects of each approach are considered so as to aid the discussions progress and suggestions are made for the requirement of an increase in future scientific research.