Hello! I am Ciarán, a 4th year Applied Psychology student. I've a large interest in forensic psychology, and many other psychological areas, such as education, entertainment, and abnormal
My project consists of a rapid structured literature review (RSLR) of scientific articles published in 2023 that were researching offender profiling, an investigative technique which identifies an offender’s major personality, behavioural, and demographic characteristics by analysing their crime scene behaviours. While it is rather famous, offender profiling did not come from a sturdy scientific foundation, and much of the research it is based on is not empirical. The purpose of the RSLR was to critically analyse the contents of the selected articles in terms of samples collected, methods used, and results found, and to investigate the current direction of offender profiling research. This project was based on an article by Fox and Farrington (2018).
The findings of my project suggest some positive changes in offender profiling research, with an increased use of inferential statistics and larger sample sizes. However, a further critique of the literature reveals that a number of methodological issues are still present, such as a greater need for effect size reporting. The findings and critiques suggest that offender profiling is moving in a positive direction, however, it still has areas where it can improve.