Missing Adult’s and
Children’s Behaviours:
Exploration of the
Narrative Action System
Model
Daniel Hunt, Dr Maria Ioannou and Dr Laura Hammond
International Research Centre for Investigative Psychology
University of Huddersfield
[email protected]
 Around 300,000 reports made annually
 Majority remain within a five-mile radius,
located within 48 hours, and experience no
Missing
Persons
Background
harm
 Majority of research focus on antecedent
influences or measurable statistics of the
missing period
 Complex and challenging nature
 Understanding behaviour via individualised
psychological meanings
Narrative
Action System
Model
 Frye’s (1957) circle of mythoi
 McAdams’ (1998, 2012) communion and agency
 Canter’s (1994) criminal ‘inner narratives’
 Canter, Kaouri & Ioannou’s (2003) offender roles
 Narrative action system model
Role
Mode
Narrative
Potency
Intimacy
Victim
Integrative
Irony
Low
High
Revenger
Conservative
Tragedy
High
High
Adaptive
Adventure
High
Low
Expressive
Quest
Low
Low
Narrative
Professional
Action System
Hero
Model
Note: Sourced from Canter and Youngs (2009, p. 162).
 Incorporation of Payne’s (1992, 1995) missing
typology
The Present
Study
 Runaways (voluntary)
 Throwaways (thrown out)
 Pushaways (behaviours of others)
 Fallaways (lost contact)
 Takeaways (abducted)
 Utilised framework of the Narrative Action
System model
 Mixed methods design
 50 archival missing persons police case files
 Differentiated into child (N = 32) or adult (N = 18)
Methodology
groups
 Content analysis of police case files
 Smallest Space Analysis [SSA]
 Production of a visual, geometric ‘space’
 Relationship of each variable measured with
every other variable
Smallest Space
Analysis [SSA]
 The higher the correlation, the closer together
their representative points will be
 Ability to perform additional analysis based on
the clusters of variables
SSA results for
missing
children
sample
Figure 1. SSA geometric plot indicating the four
narrative action system model themes within the
child sample, comprising of a .14 coefficient of
alienation
SSA results for
missing
children
sample
Figure 1. SSA geometric plot indicating the four
narrative action system model themes within the
child sample, comprising of a .14 coefficient of
alienation
SSA results for
missing adults
sample
Figure 2. SSA geometric plot indicating the four
narrative action system model themes within
the adult sample comprising of a .15 coefficient
of alienation
SSA results for
missing adults
sample
Figure 2. SSA geometric plot indicating the four
narrative action system model themes within
the adult sample comprising of a .15 coefficient
of alienation
 Individuals feel forced to go missing
 Canter’s revenger role
Pushaway’s
Conservative
Tragedy
 High intimacy, high potency
 Previous victims of violent, sexual or theft
crimes
 Longest time spent as missing
 Missing is a temporary solution
Throwaway’s
Expressive
Quest
 Canter’s hero role
 Low potency, low intimacy
 High likelihood of substance problems
 Mixed distances, locations and times
 Missing is the demonstration of unhappiness
 Seeking material gains and regaining control
 Canter’s professional role
Runaway’s
Adaptive
Adventure
 High potency, low intimacy
 Prior criminal convictions
 Victim of sexual crime
 Travelled greater distances
 Located in short time frames
 Individual has fallen away from social networks
 Canter’s victim role
Fallaway’s
Integrative
Irony
 Low potency, high intimacy
 Expresses intent for self-harm and/or suicide
 Travelled shortest distance
 Located in the quickest time
 Development for a stronger, integrated model
Implications
and
Applications
 Identification of current and future risk factors
 Reduction of financial costs required
 Ability to build on current findings
 Small sample size
Limitations
and Future
Research
 Use of police recorded data
 Incorporate first-hand interviews
 Exploration of consistency and change
 Canter, D. (1994). Criminal Shadows. London: Harper Collins.
 Canter, D., & Fritzon, K. (1998). Differentiating arsonists: a model of firesetting actions and characteristics. Legal and
Criminological Psychology, 3(1), 73-96. doi: 10.1111/j.2044-8333.1998.tb00352.x.
 Canter, D., & Ioannou, M. (2004). Criminals’ emotional experiences during crimes. International Journal of Forensic Psychology,
1(2), 71-81. Retrieved from: http://www.uow.edu.au/content/groups/public/@web/@health/documents/doc/uow045075.pdf.
 Canter, D., Kaouri, C., & Ioannou, M. (2003). The facet structure of criminal narratives. In S. Levy & D. Elizur (Eds.). Facet theory:
Towards cumulative social science. Ljubljana, Slovenia: University of Ljubljana, Centre for Educational Development.
 Canter, D., Sarangi, S., & Youngs, D. (2014). Terrorists’ personal constructs and their roles: a comparison of the three Islamic
terrorists. Legal and Criminological Psychology, 19(1), 160-178. doi: 10.1111/j.2044-8333.2012.02067.x.
 Canter, D., & Youngs, D. (2009). Investigative Psychology: Offender profiling and the analysis of criminal action. Chichester: Wiley.
References
 Canter, D., & Youngs, D. (2012). Narratives of criminal action and forensic psychology. Legal and Criminological Psychology, 17(2),
262-275. doi: 10.1111/j.2044-8333.2012.02050.x.
 European Commission (2013). Missing children in the European Union: Mapping, data collection and statistics. Rotterdam, NL:
Publications Office of the European Union
 Frye, N. (1957). Anatomy of criticism: Four essays. Princeton: Princeton University Press.
 Fyfe, N. R., Stevenson, O., & Woolnough, P. (2014). Missing persons: the process and challenges of police investigation. Police
and Society: An International Journal of Research and Policy, 25(4), 01-17. doi: 10.1080/10439463.2014.881812.
 Greene, K. S., & Hayden, C. (2014). Repeat reports to the police of missing people: Locations and characteristics. Retrieved from:
http://www.missingpersons.police.uk/en/resources/repeat-reports-to-the-police-of-missing-people-locations-andcharacteristics.
 McAdams, D. P. (1988). Power, intimacy, and the life story: Personological inquiries into identity. New York: Guilford Press.
 National Crime Agency. (2016). Missing persons data report 2015/2016. London: NCA. Retrieved from:
http://www.nationalcrimeagency.gov.uk/publications/736-missing-persons-data-report-2015-2016/file.
 Payne, M. (1995). Understanding ‘going missing’: issues for social work and social services. The British Journal of Social Work,
25(3), 333-348. Retrieved from: http://www.jiscjournalarchives.ac.uk.