What is criminal psychology?
The application of psychological principles to criminal activity. Involves:
•Criminal behavior•Risk assessment •Crime prevention •The criminal justice system
What is meant by “criminal behavior?
Conditions resulting in criminal behavior include:
•Antisocial personality disorder•Sociopathy•Psychopathy•Conduct Disorder•Borderline personality disorder
Antisocial Personality Disorder
•Manipulates, exploits, or violates the rights of others.
•Behavior is often criminal •Chronic behavior that begins in
childhood•Fire-setting and cruelty to
animals during childhood are often present
Anti-social Personality DisorderSymptoms:
•Breaks the law repeatedly •Lies, steals, and fights often •Disregards the safety of self
and others •Demonstrates a lack of guilt •Had a childhood diagnosis (or
symptoms consistent with) conduct disorder
Sociopath
•Person having antisocial personality disorder
•Physical aggression•Disregard for others• Inability to keep a job or form
relationships•Violates the rights of others•Lack of regret for
inappropriate actions
Psychopath:
• No concerns for the feelings of others• Complete disregard for social obligation. • Egocentric• no sense of responsibility or consequence. • Emotions are superficial, shallow, or
absent• Callous• Manipulative• Incapable of forming lasting relationships• Incapable of meaningful love. • Acts only for personal benefit
Sociopath vs Psychopath•Psychopaths are
– More organized in crimes– Less easily recognized – appear
“normal”– More cunning
•Sociopaths are – More agitated/nervous– Act more spontaneously– More socially inadequate – don’t fit in
Anti-social Personality Disorder
vsPsychopathy
All psychopaths have antisocial personality disorder, but not all
patients with ASPD are psychopaths
Hmmmm……
Conduct Disorder
•The childhood equivalent of Antisocial personality disorder
•Characterized by:– Aggression to people/animals– Destruction of property– Deceitfulness, lying, stealing– Serious violation of rules
Borderline Personality Disorder
•Pattern of instability in:– Interpersonal relationships– Self image– Affect (emotion) and mood– Impulsiveness – Anger and ability to control anger
•Often leads to self-damaging behavior
•Frequent history of physical fights and abuse.
Types of criminal behavior
•Arson •Stalking•Rape•Murder
– Mass murder– Serial killers
•Gang Activity
Arson
• Arson is usually for profit, or from anger
• Most arsonists are young, white males
• Most arsonists have unstable family history & background of humiliation
• Other motivations are excitement, revenge, thrills, sexual gratification
Firefighters and Arson•Arson is sometimes perpetrated
by firefighters•Firefighters looking for a way to
achieve glory and “hero-status”•Firefighter arsonists may have
few other ways to build self-esteem
•Many work for slow departments and are eager for action
Firefighter Arsonists• White male, age 17-26 • Product of a disruptive, harsh, or unstable
home • Poor relationship with dad, overprotective
mom • If married, poor marital adjustment • Lacking in social and interpersonal skills • employed in low-paying jobs • Fascinated with fire service• May be facing unusual stress (family,
financial, or legal problems • Average to above-average intelligence but
poor to fair academic performance
Red Flag Behavior for children
• Children who start playing with matches or fire as early as age 3
• Children who frequently engage in "daredevil" behavior, especially near fire
• Children who mix chemicals or engage in "secret" fire settings in which they try different mixtures
• Those who are noticeably excited while watching fires
Stalking Repeated harassment or other
forms of invasion of a person's privacy in a manner that causes fear to its target. Statutes vary between jurisdiction but may
include such acts as:
• repeated physical following • unwanted contact • observing a person's actions closely for
an extended period of time • contacting family members, friends, or
associates of a target inappropriately • Cyberstalking
Stalking Psychology
• Some stalkers believe they can make the victim love them
• Stalkers often manipulate through threats of suicide or intimidation
• Stalkers often objectify the victim so they will feel less guilt about actions
• Most stalking doesn’t lead to violence
Types of Stalkers
•Rejected: want to revenge some rejection
•Resentful: have some grievance with victim & want to frighten them
• Intimacy: “loves” the victim & wants them
Types of Stalkers
•Eroto-maniac: imagines the victim is in love with them (common with celebrities)
• Incompetent: feel entitiled to imtimacy despite poor social skills
•Predatory: stalk to plan an attack (often sexual) on the victim
Rape Definition: an act of sexual
violence which is accompanied by threat and intimidation, and which is imposed upon a victim against his/her will
Rape is about power, control, domination.
Rape is not about sex, though it is a violent crime that is expressed sexually.
Types of Rape
•Stranger rape (by a person unknown)
•Date or associate rape (by a relative, colleague, husband, or friend)
•Gang rape (by a number of men during one incident)
Patterns of Rape• Most rapists show no sign of
psychopathology• Most rapes occur indoors• Most victims know their attackers• Most rapes are planned• Most rapes are about humiliation,
domination and degradation• Violence is an effective tool
against most rapists
Rapists Of 41 convicted serial rapists Interviewed:
• 85% were white• 54% had generally stable employment• 71% had been married• 78% lived with a partner • 87% had average or above IQ scores• 76% had been sexually abused as children• 54% were socio-economically average or + • 51% had served in the armed forces
Four Types of Rapists
• Type 1: thinking about violence against women causes sexual arousal
• Type 2: mistakenly believes that some women enjoy being raped, or want to be raped; uses rape to show masculinity. Most date rapists are Type 2s.
Four Types of Rapists
• Type 3: uses sex to deal with their anger (especially against women). This is the most violent and most dangerous.
• Type 4: the repeat offender. most likely to have been abused as a child. difficulty establishing enduring relationships, and a history of chronic problems in schools or with family.
Rape Techniques•The ‘Con’: openly approaches
victim with request or offer of assistance (police officer, injury, helpful bystander)
•The ‘Blitz’: overpowers the victim with a direct, physical assault
•The ‘Surprise’: pre-meditated approach while victim is asleep or distracted; rarely involves injury
Multiple Murderers
• Multiple murderers are people who have killed more than one victim.
• multiple killers are classified into three basic categories – – mass murderers– spree killers– Serial killers
Mass Murderers•kills four or more people at
one location during one continuous period of time, whether it is a few minutes or over a period of days. –Make no attempt to hide–Often die by suicide or police after incident
Three Types of Mass Murderers:
• Family annihilators• Paramilitary/political enthusiasts• Revenge/Disgruntled workers
Family Annihilators• In 2007, A man in LAYTONSVILLE,
Md., shot and killed his ex-wife, their three children (12 y/o boy, 10 y/o girl, 6 y/o boy) and himself after winning custody of the kids in a divorce.
• Ronald Lee Simmons: the father of his daughter's son, killed fourteen members of his family on Christmas in 1987 when his wife threatened to divorce him.
Paramilitary/Political Murderer
• Adolf Hitler blamed & killed the Jews for Germany's problems
• The terrorists who attacked the World Trade Center perceive the victims as violating the terrorists' political or religious goals.
• Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols bombed the federal building in Oklahoma City on April 19, 1995, because they were angry at the federal government over the Waco, raid against the Branch Davidians
Revenge/Disgruntled Worker
• David Burke, a fired airline employee, followed his boss onto a plane in 1987, shot him, and caused the plane to crash, killing forty-three people.
• Pat Sherrill, fearing that he might be fired from his postal job, killed fourteen coworkers and wounded six others in 1986.
• In 1999, Mark Barton, a day trader, killed his family and entered two brokerage firms, slaying nine and wounding twelve after losing a great deal of money .
Another type of revenge mass murder: School Shootings
• In 1999, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold murdered 12 classmates, 1 teacher, and wounded 24 others at Columbine High School before shooting themselves.
• In 1998, Kip Kinkel, 15, killed 2 classmates and wounded 25 others at Thurston HS (Oregon) after killing his two parents in their home.
Spree Killers
•kill two or more victims, but are in more than one location.
• the spree is considered a single event, because there is no "cooling off" period between the murders.
Example of Spree Killer: George Banks
• In George Banks, a prison guard, went hunting for his loved ones in various locations at 2 am. The following were killed in the spree:
• three girlfriends • his five children (ages 1 – 11)• two neighbors who were trying to flee• A former girlfriend & their 5-year-old son• his Former girlfriend’s mother• His former girlfriend’s 7-year-old nephew• Two brothers of the former Girlfriend
(survived)
Serial Killers
•murder three or more victims, but each is killed on separate occasions – usually select their victims– cooling off periods between
murders– plan their crimes carefully
Serial Killers• Most serial killers will fall into a pattern,
either of modus operandi, location, victim type, motive, etc.
• The patterns of activities often allow police to apprehend the killer.
• Serial killers are often described as ‘normal’, ‘very chatty’ and ‘a good neighbor’.
" We are your sons, and we are your husbands, and we grew up in regular families” Serial Killer Ted Bundy
Serial Killers
Typical serial Killers are: •Predominantly male•White•Within their twenties or
thirties•Middle class•Kill within their ethnic group
Types of serial killers (patterns)Organized
• Characteristics: Socially competent, intelligent , a planner, generally targets strangers, someone who uses restraints, has sex with their victims and uses a vehicle.
• Typical behaviors: living with a partner, follows the crime in the media, plans the killing, the victim’s body is hidden, evidence is often absent, may return to the crime scene and anticipates police questioning.
• Very difficult to catch
Example of organized killers
•Ted Bundy: fake cast on arm, gained sympathy and then beat victims with a metal post
•Harold Shipman: a physician who killed over 250 elderly patients by making it look like death from natural causes
Types of serial killers (patterns)
Disorganized• Characteristics: socially immature, may
know his victims, kills spontaneously, often sexually inhibited, harsh childhood discipline.
• Typical behaviors: lives alone, knows victim, sloppy crime scene, evidence present, shows no interest in the media, and does not change lifestyle as a result of the killing.
• Easier to catch than the organized killer
Examples of disorganized killers
•Ed Gein: collected parts and displayed them around the house. He got the parts both from women that he killed and from exhumed graves
•David Berkowitz: stabbed or shot couples sitting in their cars, and then ran away
Types of Serial Killer (motives)
•Visionary type: “visions” or “voices” guide their actions
•Mission-orientated type – want to remove a certain group from society
•Hedonistic type - derive pleasure or gain from the killing
•Power/ control-orientated type - enjoy controlling their victims with some sexual satisfaction
The Psychology of Gangs
•Gang Membership is associated with antisocial behaviors
•Gangs can result in death or injury of victims
•Gang members are also at risk for injury, death, incarceration
•Most gang members are young, African American males, but females and other ethnic groups are also common
Gangs
In groups, divide a piece of paper into four parts. Do each of the following in one corner:
•Who joins gangs (characteristics)•Why people join gangs•Advantages of being in a gang•Disadvantages of being in a gang
Who joins gangs?
•Low socio-economic status•Single parent homes •Homes with heavy discipline
but minimal supervision•Have delinquent friends•Attend school with gang
members
Why Kids Join Gangs• drawn by parties, girls, & drugs.
• looking for respect, and power.
• want to be associated with a ‘family’ or community.
• want to make money , to have nice clothes, etc.
• join for self protection.
• grow up in a neighborhood where it is almost a way of life.
• prefer the streets to problems at home.
“Advantages” of being in a gang
• Provide protection from other gangs
• Provide a sense of family or instant friends
• Provide income through drug sales
• Provide respect and recognition
Disadvantages of being in a gang
• Most don’t get rich – just the leaders• Dealing results in Long hours and
dangerous work• Risk of death or incarceration is high• Most gangs have severe initiation
rituals– Females are beat or ‘sexed’ in– Boys are beat or must commit some
crime
Secret SymbolsDo you know how to spot it?
On a piece of paper, draw a local gang symbol or write a method of identifying gang
members that you have seen or heard. Fold the paper up and
put it in the box.
Recognizing Gang Involvement
• Special hand signals • Unique symbols and lettering on tattoos • Clothing (hats, bandannas, sagging
pants, etc.) suggesting group or gang involvement
• Possession of unexplained large sums of money
• Changes in attitude: violent reactions, disruptive behavior, refusal to respond to authority (teachers, police, parents) etc.
Recognizing Gang Involvement
• Secretive behavior regarding activities and locations
• Change in friends or friends who are not brought home
• Truancy or poor school performance • phone callers that refuse to identify
themselves or use nicknames only• problems with school officials and police
officers • Involvement with known or suspected
gang members • Interest in or possession of weapons
Recognizing Gang Involvement
• Wearing one particular color of clothing or a particular logo excessively
• Wearing jewelry with distinctive designs only on the right or left hand of the body
• Drawing gang symbols and using gang handwriting (usually grafitti-like, hard to decipher, and characterized by crossed out, and upside-down letters, and gang symbols)
• Using strange language or slang, especially when certain letters of words are substituted (like "flue" for blue, in Blood slang)
Risk Assessment:How are criminals ‘made’?
• Genetics/DNA/chromosomes• Environmental factors• Biochemistry• Family traits• Economic circumstances• Neurological damage
A combination of these factors can be devastating
How are criminals made?Genetics
• Criminals have a genetic predisposition
• Genetic anomaly limits the function of the amygdala, leaving psychopath with inability to understand & feel emotion
• Studies show similar tendencies in twins raised apart
• Extra chromosomes have been linked to some serial killers
How are criminals made?Environmental
The roots of antisocial behavior lie in early childhood events:
• insecure attachment• a weak sense of self• a dysfunctional family• coercive or indifferent parenting• physical, sexual or emotional abuse or
neglect• the death of a parent• low family income• Separated or divorce• low academic achievement
How Criminals are madeEnvironmental
Henry Lee Lucas’ mother beat him with a broom
handle for years, dressed him as a girl, and made him
watch her have sex with men who later beat him.
How are criminals made?Biochemistry
•Reduced glucose levels•Reduced seratonin levels
(seratonin mellows us out)• Increased testosterone
(creates need to dominate)•Sometimes have high traces
of toxic metals
How are criminals made?Brain traits
Psychopaths have abnormal brain activities:
•Less active pre-frontal cortex
(impulse control)•Overactive limbic system
(aggression, sexual desire)•Overactive temporal lobes (temper
outbursts and mood disturbances)
How are criminals made?Economic factors
•The purpose of the kill is to gain financially
•Female killers often murder for insurance money
•Arsonists often burn for profit
How are criminals made?Neurological Damage
•Frontal Lobe damage causes lack of social behavior and self-control
•Phineas Gage•Albert Fish (Brooklyn
vampire) had frontal lobe damage at age 7
Risk Assessment: McDonald’s Triad
Three traits in children that may show a tendency to become a serial killer:
• Fire-starting: destroying for thrills
• Cruelty to animals: particularly larger animals (dogs, cats)
• Bedwetting: beyond the normal age
Crime Prevention
•Criminal psychology is used to predict, identify, find, and convict criminals
•Criminal profiling is the primary tool
What is Criminal Profiling?
Study and prediction of criminal behavior used to indicate:
• How the criminal thinks• Motivation for crime• Modus operandi •Signature
How is Profiling Used?
•As a tool to identify possible suspects
•As a tool to point investigators in the right direction
•As a tool to open new leads•As a tool to help investigators
know what evidence to look for•Not as a tool for conviction –
conviction requires evidence, not speculation
Elements of a criminal profile• Probable AGE, sex, and race
• Probable residence and living arrangements
• Intelligence level• Probable occupation • Probable marital status • Psychosexual maturity• Probable type/condition of vehicle • Probable motivating factors• Probable arrest record• Provocating factors to incite the suspect• Recommended interrogation techniques
Modus Operandi and Signature
• Modus operandi (MO): the method commonly used by the criminal– Victim/location selection, means of
attack, use of weapon, planning, means of transport
– Valuables taken– Evidence left behind
• Bundy: approach victim in daylight, gain their trust, lure them to his car, and hit them in the head with a crowbar, disposal in one specific dump site.
Ritual and Signature• Signature: what the criminal does
beyond the crime; the acting out of a fantasy– Wound patterns, sex acts, means of
control, rituals, talk, staging the body
– Souvenirs taken– Evidence destroyed
• Bundy: Post-mortem rape, applying make-up to corpse, decapitation, photo keepsakes, cremating body parts to prevent capture
MO vs. Signature
•MO can change or evolve over time as criminal becomes more experienced
•Signature is the ‘calling card’ or Trademark
•Signature points to personality traits, hang-ups, and compulsions
•Signatures do not change, but may worsen over time
Steps in Profiling a Case
1. Determine the physical, behavioral and demographics of the unknown offender
2. Identify post-offense behavior of the offender and strategies for apprehension
3. Develop interview strategies once the offender is apprehended
4. Determine the signature of the offender
5. Determine where evidence can be located
Input Needed by Profiler
A. Crime scene video, photos, sketches, evidence logs
B. Autopsy video, photos, hospital, forensics, reports
C. Neighborhood data, Maps, victim's travels, lifestyle
D. Investigative reports, witness statements
Criminal Psychology and Crime Prevention/Intervention
Criminal psychologists may:•Provide victim or witness
evaluation and treatment•Assess and treat individuals in
the workplace who are high risk for aggression
•Screen and treat police officers• Juvenile Assessment,
intervention, and crime prevention
Criminal Psychology and the Criminal Justice
System •A criminal psychologist May:•perform psychiatic evaluation for
insanity or trial competency•Provide expert testimony for trial•Consultation for jury selection,
child testimony, or expert witness•Determine treatment or
intervention for mentally ill defendents
Visionary type examples:Ed Gein
• Ate the corpses of women who looked like his deceased mother to preserve his mother's soul inside his body.
• Used the flesh of exhumed female corpses to fashion a "woman suit" so that he could "become" his mother.
• After his arrest he was placed in a mental facility for the remainder of his life.
Visionary type ExamplesHerbert Mullin
• Voices told him that killing people in California would prevent an earthquake
• Killed a total of 13 people• After capture, he pointed out
repeatedly that he had, indeed, prevented the earthquake
Missionary Type Examples
• Jack the Ripper: in 19th century London, he killed 5 prostitutes and removed their organs
•Gary Ridgway (Green River Killer): in 2001, confessed to the murder of 48+ prostitutes
Missionary Type Examples
•Ted Kaczynski (Unibomber) sent mail bombs to create leverage for a set of demands in his “manifesto”
•Zebra Killers: (1970’s) black supremacist group who killed ‘inferior whites’ with a machete to earn points towards heaven
Hedonistic type examples
•Yang Xinhai: china’s most notorious serial killer murdered 65 people from 1999-2003:
•David Berkowitz: Got a thrill out of shooting young couples in their car and then running away
Hedonistic Quote
"When I killed people I had a desire sexual excitement. This inspired me to kill more. I don't care whether they deserve to live or not. It is none of my concern“
Yang Xinhai