Clues as information, the semiotic gap, and inferential investigative processes, or making a (very small) contribution to the new discipline, Forensic Semiotics

TY - JOUR

T1 - Clues as information, the semiotic gap, and inferential investigative processes, or making a (very small) contribution to the new discipline, Forensic Semiotics

AU - Sørensen, Bent

AU - Thellefsen, Torkild Leo

AU - Thellefsen, Martin Muderspach

PY - 2017/3/1

Y1 - 2017/3/1

N2 - In this article, we try to contribute to the new discipline Forensic Semiotics – a discipline introduced by the Canadian polymath Marcel Danesi. We focus on clues as information and criminal investigative processes as inferential. These inferential (and Peircean) processes have a certain complexity consisting of the interrelation between the collateral observations of the investigator, e. g., his background knowledge concerning criminal and technical analysis, the context that the investigator acts within or in relation to (the universe of discourse), e. g., the scene of crime or the criminal law, as well as the clues as information that will cause the inferential processes in the first place. We believe that this focus can tell us something about crime solving that is not just sensitive to epistemological factors (how to know), but also ontological (what to know) and normative factors as well (how to value the processes of crime solving).

AB - In this article, we try to contribute to the new discipline Forensic Semiotics – a discipline introduced by the Canadian polymath Marcel Danesi. We focus on clues as information and criminal investigative processes as inferential. These inferential (and Peircean) processes have a certain complexity consisting of the interrelation between the collateral observations of the investigator, e. g., his background knowledge concerning criminal and technical analysis, the context that the investigator acts within or in relation to (the universe of discourse), e. g., the scene of crime or the criminal law, as well as the clues as information that will cause the inferential processes in the first place. We believe that this focus can tell us something about crime solving that is not just sensitive to epistemological factors (how to know), but also ontological (what to know) and normative factors as well (how to value the processes of crime solving).

KW - Faculty of Humanities

KW - Forensic Semiotics

KW - clues as information

KW - crime solving as inferential processes

KW - C. S. Peirce

U2 - 10.1515/sem-2016-0063

DO - 10.1515/sem-2016-0063

M3 - Journal article

SN - 0037-1998

VL - 215

SP - 91

EP - 118

JO - Semiotica

JF - Semiotica

ER -