Analysis of violent criminal behavior

¶ … Violent Criminal Behavior

Uniqueness of Rape as a Crime

Behavioral Identification and Classification of Rape as a Crime

Characteristics of Victims

Modus Operandi (MO) and Signatures

Disorganized Asocial Offender

Organized Nonsocial Offender

Social and Cultural Factors Contributing Towards Rape as a Crime

Psychoanalyzing Rapists

Power Reassurance

Power Assertive

Anger Retaliatory

Sadistic Rapists

A number of violent crimes are known to the world. The nature of these violent crimes is more dependent on the person who is committing the crimes. The psychological and the psychosocial profile of the person can more reveal the background of the crime being committed, the reasons associated, and the outcomes looked out for when the crimes are being committed. In this paper, the kind of violent crime that will be highlighted is rape. The paper will further include psych profiling of a typical rapist, the reasons of commitment to the violent crimes (Holmes, and Holmes, 2002, p. 67).

Uniqueness of Rape as a Crime

Rape is not about being involved with someone at sexual level. Rape is a crime that involves taking control with force and violence. Involving in sexual activity can only be thought of as a weapon. When rapists and their behaviors are taken into consideration, it is important to understand that there are reasons behind the activities that they have. Although all rapists do almost the same thing but there are differences in the motives that they have, differences in the way they conduct the act and the characteristics that they have.

Behavioral Identification and Classification of Rape as a Crime

Usually rapists have very low self-esteem. Having a very less self-confidence and nil communicating or self-reassuring skills, rapists have very poor relationships with women (Mariotte, 2010, p. 90). Some rapists believe that raping is a means to exhibit force and power based on which women can be controlled. Rape is a means to validate the masculinity that he has. Some rapists are defined by the fact that they have an extreme hatred against the women thereby they tend to hurt the women who is the victim. Rapists often believe that women are responsible for the injustices that the rapist has suffered in his life. The anger that a rapist has against the women is beyond control and he wants to punish, hurt, and demoralize the women.

A number of studies have been carried out by the authors carrying out psych profiling of the rapists. Most of the studies have shown that rapists are mostly younger, less than 25 years of age. The rapists usually belong to low earning backgrounds belonging to minority groups, races, or ethnicities that are economically less privileged. Usually rapists are unarmed. Most of the rapists are well calculated and plan before attacking the victim. Most of the rapists have a strong history of violence. Studies have shown that approximately one in three rapists have a history of committing at least one violent crime in the past and less than 25% of the rapists have been in the court of law.

Characteristics of Victims

Important additions to the rapist's psych profiling have been done by the Behavioral Science Unit of FBI. One of the main facts that have been highlighted by the studies is that the victims of the rapists often belong to their own races or ethnicities (Girod, 2004, p. 89). It has been highlighted that the rapist may tend to attend the funeral of his victim and may revisit the place where the crime was committed. Crime scene characteristics have been highlighted by the authors and these include unknown and a strange victim, spontaneous offense, lesser than usual conversation, chaotic and a haphazard crime scene, increased violence, absence of restraints, sexual activity persistence even after the death of the victim, presence of the body, physical evidence and weaponry at the crime scene. In some cases, selection of the victim is a long process. The rapist tends to select a residence that is closer to where the selected victim lives. Time is taken to stalk her and peep her for longer times. If the victim who is often a woman, force of fist can be used. The rapist in these cases is lesser concerned about the well-being and comfort level of the victim. Verbal as well as physical violence may be used in order to launch a brutal attack

Stalking comes by driving out of rapist's own residential area looking for the victims in the car loaded with the rape kit that contains ski mask, and duct tape. The usual strategy followed by these rapists includes selecting a secluded area where the victims can be tied for weeks or even months for constant torture and raping. Fear in the victims is what excites a rapist rather the death or torture itself. Rapists are observed to be very ritualistic and keen observers. Noticing every small detail is also one of the most important skills that they have. They can plan the rape, torture, kidnapping and body disposal down to the last very detail based on which these rapist can get away every easily with the rape and murder (Turvey, 2011, p. 87). The victim in some cases is not assaulted or no violence is used based on which some rapists are referred to as unselfish rapists. Self-esteem is increased in rapists as they tend to control their victims. In most of the cases, it has been seen that the victim can easily escape the rapist as he can be easily talked out of it as the main motif of the offender is not to hurt the victim.

Modus Operandi (MO) and Signatures

Typologies of rapists have been outlined and defined by the FBI. These typologies include the classifications of being a disorganized asocial offender and also organized nonsocial offender. These classifications have been considered important as these can help in psych profiling the crimes that primarily involve sex.

1. Disorganized Asocial Offender

The offender classified in this category is the one who is completely disorganized in the normal life with almost every task assigned. Life, job, car, home, almost every aspect of the lie of the criminal is completely disorganized (Innes, 2003, p. 29). These characteristics have been defined and outlined by the FBI using their databases and it has been outlined that the rapists of these sort are usually white, with a lesser than average IQ, are usually high school dropouts, and tend to be nonassertive.

Poor hygiene and sloppy manners are exhibited by such criminals. The issues of having poor hygiene is also seen in the belongings that they have including car, home etc. based on these behaviors, such criminals exhibit socially incompetent behavior with complete lack of a healthy social life. These criminals are observed to have an introvert and withdrawn personality. Thereby here, it can be seen that the criminals completely lack any intellectual, social and organizational skills being completely unable to plan the rape attack sin his victims based on which the attacks are spontaneous (Ramsland, 2002, p. 78).

2. Organized Nonsocial Offender

The characteristics showed by this offender are very much different as compared to those showed by the disorganized offender. The main and defining characteristics in the case of the organized offender include being more organized, having compulsive thoughts and behaviors which are not seen in the case of disorganized offenders. The compulsive behaviors are apparently visual in the lifestyle of the person including the organization of his house, job, and his car (Jacobs, 2011, p. 48). One of the main examples of such criminals includes Ted Bundy. Almost all the activities that are completed by the rapist are very organized. It has been highlighted by the author that the rapists choose to be nonsocial. One of the main reasons of being nonsocial is that the rapists have higher ego thinking normal and usual people do not measure up to their levels. Education levels of these criminals are higher and these are at least college graduates. The IQ levels of these criminals are higher. As compared to the disorganized offenders, organized offenders are sexually competent having active sex partners. These people belong to middle class backgrounds and having better IQ, these people are able to con other people easily.

Social and Cultural Factors Contributing Towards Rape as a Crime

Rapists have been linked to having a disturbed home background with most rapists having a single parent home. Employments and jobs that rapists get are of menial level because of belonging to a less educated background. Racism is seen to have a great effect on the psychology of rapists. Neighborhoods with higher racial disparities leads these people having lower self-esteem. Social and cultural background of rapists has shown that they mostly are sons to more controlling and an aggressive single parent. Being very passive and quiet, rapists of these backgrounds have no friends. Background of these rapists involves disturbed households and multiple divorces. The job lines that are adopted by some rapists involve masculinity-based jobs that include police work (Turvey, 2011, p. 82).

Psychosocial background of these rapists is inclusive of physical as well as verbal abuse which can be from both or one of the parents. Abuse-based background is seen in more than 56% of the rapists in this category. More than 80% of the rapists belong to divorced households; most of these are adopted or have spent their childhood in foster care. Relationships of these rapists with women in the past have failed or did not work based on which hostile feelings have developed against the opposite sex.

Background profiling on rapists has shown that these normally are raised in single parent households with increased issues. Additionally they grow up being physically as well as verbally abused facing sexual deviances. The children facing these conditions are the ones that clearly show tendencies towards sexual promiscuity. In the case of adults, it has been seen that they are married later in life around 30 to 39 years of age having a residence in a low crime area in a middle class family and a middle class neighborhood.

Psychoanalyzing Rapists

There are four main characteristics of a rapist. These are inclusive of power assertiveness, power reassurance, sadistic or anger excitation and anger retaliatory.

1. Power Reassurance

The studies have highlighted that more than 81% of the rapists fall in this category. The rapists in these categories are in a habit to use the least amount of violence based on which these are referred to as men rapists. Victim in these cases is the one who is related to the rapist being a temporary 'love' or a date. Thereby level of intimacy is added in these cases. A completely passive and non-athletic personality makes these rapists less harmful.

2. Power Assertive

Almost 12% of the rapists follow the pattern of being more power assertive. These are the offenders having an extreme sense of entitlement and superiority. The offender thinks that men being more powerful physically than women can do this. He has an active lifestyle, works out, has a flashy dressing and just to be more attractive has a good job and a flashy car. As compared to the power reassurance kind of rapists, power assertive rapists are the ones who have a sense of style and is boisterous and loud (Kapardis, 2010, p. 56). Rapists in these categories are fond of having a macho image of themselves thereby they tend to appear flashy and full of life. Usually the main spots that are selected by these rapists include nightclubs or bars where they can select their victims and date them. One of the main facts is that instead of forcing his victim, these rapists con the victims into trusting them enough to be alone with them so that the rapist is given all the best opportunities,