Adult Criminal Profiling 19regions also implicated biological anomalies as a possible cause of criminal behav-
ior. The reader must be cautioned, however, that attributing an offender's behavior
to a biological or brain disturbance may lead to a belief that such behavior can-
not be helped due to its uncontrollable biological nature. In addition, sentencing
implications may be present due to a diagnosed brain abnormality.
Turco (1990) emphasizes a psychoanalytic orientation in the production of psy-
chological/criminological profiles of offenders. He states that a crime scene is like
a project!ve device such as a Rorschach ink blot. There are a number of person-
ality characteristics derived from evidence and manipulation of the crime scene
which can be interpreted much like a subject's response to an ink blot. Turco s
psychoanalytic background stresses the importance of early childhood experiences,
relationships, and unresolved conflicts and their relation to current behavior. Fur-
ther. this information can be used to predict future behaviors based on these same
variables.
The FBI has done a great amount of research in the area of criminal profiling.
Special agents in the FBI have developed, through archival and current case infor-
mation, typical characteristics likely to be found in a particular type of offender.
Hazelwood (1983) describes how a profile of a rapist can be obtained primarily
through competent and informed interviewing of rape victims. He states that in
profiling the rapist, three basic steps are critical: (1) careful interview of the victim
regarding the rapist's behavior, (2) analysis of that behavior in an attempt to ascertain
the motivation underlying the assault, and (3) a profile compilation of the individ-
ual likely to have committed the crime in the manner reported with the assumed
motivation.
In establishing a profile of a rapist, Hazelwood describes how the rapist behaves
within his environment relative to his personality structure. Behaviors are broken
down into a number of categories and the victim is asked detailed information
regarding behavior in an attempt to classify the rapist. Three basic forms of behavior
are exhibited by the rapist: physical (force), verbal, and sexual. For example, the
rapist who dominates his victim primarily through the use of verbal degradation
and threats may be portraying a personality characteristic consistent with an intense
desire to emotionally harm his victim. This may be indicative of a recent break-up
between the rapist and his girlfriend. The rape therefore serves as revenge on the
girlfriend through the victim in order to satisfy a psychological need. Based on this
information, profilers can then begin to formulate the type of personality profile
which may use rape as a means of rectification and revenge.
Other, more common techniques of profiling offenders come from gaining de-
tailed information from a criminal population convicted of committing the same
or similar crimes. These data are used to establish patterns or norms based on
that particular type of offender. According to the FBI (1985b), individual devel-
opment of offenders is based on two primary factors: the dominance of a fantasy
life and a history of personal abuse. These factors are used to develop a working
profile ot a murderer. In-depth interviews of 36 sexual murderers revealed a number