Basic Types of Analysis

"Crime analysis" sounds rather straightforward, but it isn't. The list below includes some things that are done frequently in crime analysis, while some other types of analysis are more often in "intelligence analysis." These categories are broad categories, not types based on analytical products.

Person Analysis (focus on people - who? possible motive (why)?)

Modus Operandi Analysis (focus on methods - how?)

Spatial Analysis (focus on places - where? in relation to what?)

Temporal Analysis (focus on time - when?)

Commodities Analysis (focus on things - what? how many? flow...)

Financial Analysis (focus on finance - what, where, how? flow...)

Communication Analysis (who communicates with who? how? how often?)

Market Analysis  (what markets (what) are involved?)

Demographic Analysis (what populations (who) are involved?)

Link Analysis (what are the connections?)

Statistical Analysis (how many? how much? what changes?)

Problem Analysis (what are the variables? who are the stakeholders?  what are the bigger issues of this case? what has worked in the past? how can we design workable solutions?)

Threat Analysis (what is the threat? who are the threat actors?) 

Types of analysis are usually combined to make meaning.

Examples:

Who does what and how do they do it?

When and where are what activities occurring?

Who is being victimized by whom and why?

What is being taken and how?

No matter where you are in your career as an analyst, in the public or private sector, you can expand your abilities and worth by becoming better trained in types of analysis that you do not currently conduct. Incorporate another type of analysis in your work to provide a more complete analytical product, to more fully meet the needs of those you serve.