What Does a Criminal Profiler Do?

A criminal profiler is someone who has extensively studied psychology and criminology. Although they don't solve crimes themselves, they play an important part in the crime solving process, especially in major homicide cases.

Profiling

The most well-known aspect of a criminal profiler's career is profiling. Criminal profiling involves studying the clues left at a crime scene and creating a personality profile of the offender, making it easier for police officers to catch the criminal.

Teaching

Another aspect of a criminal profiler's career involves educating police departments, psychologists and others in the criminal justice system about profiling and how it can be used.

Expert Witness

Criminal profilers work as expert witnesses providing unbiased testimony in criminal court cases that may benefit from a psychological view of the criminal mind.

Research

Criminal profilers spend most of their time researching connections between criminals and the crimes they commit. Looking at previous criminals, and how or why they committed their crimes, allows profilers to more accurately profile future criminals.

Misconceptions

There are many misconceptions about what a criminal profiler does. They spend most of their time in their office, don't work in crime labs, don't solve crimes and don't create profiles by talking to other criminals, as many popular television programs and movies would suggest.

References

• Criminal Profiling: The Reality Behind the Myth