ABSTRACT
5The role and responsibilities of the criminal investigator have changed dramatically over the past 25 years, largely as a result of changes in social perceptions, culture, technology, the law, the media, and new forms of communication—such as the Internet, cellular telephones, imaging, and social media. Perhaps most important has been the changing role of the investigator as a specialist, educated and trained to be knowledgeable about complex systems, societal differences, and organizational theory. The scrutiny of the criminal investigation process by police administrators, researchers, and scholars has also been important. Today, many of the major changes in crime investigation have come through research conducted by universities, private laboratories, and government-sponsored projects. As many retired investigators took up careers in the academic community, closer dialogue between practitioners, academics, and researchers has proven beneficial. Research across the spectrum of the behavioral and information sciences holds great promise for improvement in the investigative function.
