The Action System Model: A Typology of Spanish Homicides.

The Action System model offers a scientific foundation to the differentiation and classification of crimes, based on behavioral indicators, allowing the establishment of relationships between the actions carried out by the offender on the crime scene and their characteristics. Although it was originally developed for application to fires, its utility has been tested in distinct criminal typologies, with few studies having considered homicides. The objective of this study was to examine the effectiveness and validity of the Action System model to differentiate thematically between the structure of the homicides and to create a typology of simple homicides in Spain, based on the relationships between the modus operandi, characteristics of the victims and characteristics of the offenders. The sample consisted of 448 homicides. Four homicide typologies were identified: Expressive, Adaptive, Integrative and Conservative, which represent 87.5% of the studied cases. Expressive homicides are impulsive, with offenders having criminal records and previously knowing their victims. Adaptive homicides are linked to robberies and sexual aggressions, in which the victim and offender are strangers. Integrative homicides take place in the family environment, specifically female offenders and femicides. Conservative homicides are very well planned, highlighting the presence of post mortem actions. The findings of this work suggest that the Action System model is a useful theoretical framework for the identification of variations in criminal behavior and understanding of the psychological processes underlying the homicides. These results have practical implications in the academic setting, since they offer a global perspective as to how simple homicides in Spain may be differentiated, also within the framework of criminal profiling, specifically, suspect prioritization.

Expressiveness and Instrumentality of Crime Scene Behavior in Spanish Homicides.

One of the current trends in the study of criminal profiling consists of developing theoretical and methodological typologies to offer information of operational use in police investigations. The objective of this work was to verify the validity of the instrumental/expressive model, so as to establish homicide typologies based on modus operandi relationships, characteristics of the victims, and characteristics of perpetrators. The sample consisted of 448 homicide cases registered in the database of the Homicide Revision Project of the Office of Coordination and Studies of the Spanish Secretary of State and Security. Through multidimensional scaling and cluster analysis, three expressive homicide subtypes were identified (expressive-impulsive, expressive-distancing, and expressive-family), as well as two instrumental homicide subtypes (instrumental-opportunist and instrumental-gratification). The expressive homicide typologies accounted for almost 95% of all of the studied cases, and most of the homicides occurring in Spain were found to take place between individuals who know one another (friends, family members, intimate couples/ex-couples). The findings from this study suggest that the instrumental/expressive model may be a useful framework for understanding the psychological processes underlying homicides, based on the study of relationships between the crime and aggressor characteristics, which may be very helpful in the prioritization of suspects.

Homicide Profiles Based on Crime Scene and Victim Characteristics.

One of the current trends in homicide research includes developing works based on scientific study and empirical evidence, which offer conclusions that can be used in an operational manner during police investigations. The objective of this study was to identify homicide characteristics from behaviors carried out on the crime scene and victim characteristics associated with those of the perpetrators of these crimes in Spain. The sample consisted of 448 homicide cases from the database of the Homicide Revision Project led by the Office of Coordination and Studies of the Secretary of State and Security. After creating six classification tree models, it was found that the modus operandi of the aggressor and the victim characteristics may permit hypothesizing about the demographic characteristics of the perpetrator (gender, age, and country of origin), his/her criminal record, and the type of relationship with the victim. Furthermore, the importance of the study of victimology during a criminal investigation is highlighted, as it may indirectly offer information about the potential perpetrator. The findings of this study suggest that criminal profiling contributes notably to the decision-making process to establish more rigorous suspect prioritization, improve the management of human resources and materials, and increase the efficiency of criminal investigations.