Profiling, Part VI: Other Profilers & More Information

The FBI's program isn't the only profiling system available, though it is the most widely recognized. David Canter, a British psychologist, has a similar system called Investigative Psychology, which also relies on statistical data. Canter, however, constantly updates the database and his technique operates by studying offenders, assigning them to groups called typologies, and then comparing the crimes of an unknown subject to the group of known ones. By doing this, Canter develops a list of characteristics the unknown person likely exhibits.

Canter's program, called the five-factor model, deals with interaction between the victim and the subject. These factors utilize psychology and known patterns of behavior. Canter's system is more involved than I can discuss here, but you can read more about it in Wayne Petherick's article Criminal Profiling: How it got started and how it is used.

Forensic scientist Brent Turvey is another profiler with a method differing from the FBI's. Behavioral Evidence Analysis (BEA) is Turvey's contribution to profiling. His focus is on forensics rather than psychology, and he creates his profiles by interpreting the evidence, developing a complete profile on the victim, and reading the crime scene.

That wraps up this series on profiling. I realize it's just a scratch on the surface of the subject, which has become well known, thanks to television and the big screen. I welcome questions and discussion on the subject.

For more information on serial killers and profiling, take a look at these Web sites:

Profiling Classification Systems
The Beast Within
The Serial Killer Info Site
Forensic Science Web Page
True Crime on the Web
Mind of a Killer: An Investigation of Serial Homicide
The Crime Library
Scratching Post Serial Killers Archive
Violent Crime Scene Analysis: Modus Operandi, Signature, and Staging (article)
Behavior Evidence (article)

For books on profiling, look at these:

The Evil That Men Do: FBI Profiler Roy Hazelwood's Journey into the Minds of Sexual Predators
by Stephen G. Michaud & Roy Hazelwood

Profiling Violent Crimes: An Investigative Tool
by Ronald M. Holmes & Stephen T. Holmes

Dead Giveaways: How Real Life Crimes Are Solved by Amazing Scientific Evidence, Personality Profiling and Paranormal Investigations
by Andrew Donkin

The Anatomy of Motive: The FBI's Legendary Mindhunter Explores the Key to Understanding and Catching Violent Criminals
by John Douglas & Mark Olshaker

Mindhunter: Inside the FBI's Elite Serial Crime Unit

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