They use techniques employed by physical anthropologists to identify human skeletal remains. They analyze skeletal remains to build a profile consisting of age, race, sex, height, presence or absence of trauma, and time since death. The purpose of the profile is to aid law enforcement in positive identification of an individual when no other means are available. Sometimes it is not possible to gather all of the pertinent information because the remains may be badly damaged or fragmented. Whenever possible, however, forensic anthropologists create a detailed profile of the remains, with the ultimate goal of positive identification.
Forensic pathologists are medical doctors that specialize in forensic pathology.
They perform autopsies in order to establish the cause of death. Forensic anthropologists concentrate mainly on bony anatomy, whereas, forensic pathologists concentrate on soft tissue anatomy, internal organs, bodily fluids, etc. Forensic anthropologists with a graduate degree usually work at a college or university. Their employment involves teaching physical anthropology courses, conducting osteological research, and providing community services and forensic case analysis. Recently, many forensic anthropologists and graduate students have provided assistance in identifying human remains in Bosnia.