@article{ref1,
title="A failure to find empirical support for the homology assumption in criminal profiling",
journal="Journal of police and criminal psychology",
year="2008",
author="Doan, Brandy and Snook, Brent",
volume="23",
number="2",
pages="61-70",
abstract="A fundamental assumption in criminal profiling is that criminals who exhibit similar crime scene actions have similar background characteristics. We tested this so-called homology assumption by first classifying, with pre-existing typologies, a sample of arsons ( N = 87) and robberies ( N = 177) into different crime types and then comparing the background characteristics of criminals who committed the various crime types. Results showed that using pre-existing typologies to classify the crimes into mutually exclusive types was not easily accomplished. Notwithstanding classification difficulties, the homology assumption was violated in 56% of the comparisons of background characteristics between the different arson types and in 67% of the comparisons of background characteristics between the different robbery types. Overall, 73% of the effect sizes for the associations between crime type and background characteristics were low to moderate ( V &lt; .3; d &lt; .2). The implications of these findings for profiling practices are discussed.<p />",
language="",
issn="0882-0783",
doi="10.1007/s11896-008-9026-7",
url="http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11896-008-9026-7"
}