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This paper addresses two methodological and theoretical questions relating to the Cognitive Interview (CI), which previous research has found to increase witness recall in interviews. (1) To what extent are the effects of the CI mnemonic techniques when communication techniques are held constant? (2) How do trained interviewers compare with untrained interviewers? In this study, witnesses (college students) viewed a short film clip of a shooting and were questioned by interviewers (research assistants) trained in conducting the CI or a Structured Interview (SI), similar to the CI save for the `cognitive' components, or by untrained interviewers (UI). The CI and SI groups recalled significantly more correct information compared to the UI group. However they also reported more errors and confabulated details. Theoretical and practical implications of the results are discussed in terms of precisely identifying the CI facilitatory effects and consequent good practice in the forensic setting.

The Cognitive Interview (CI) is a procedure designed for use in police interviews involving witnesses. This study tested the most recent version of the CI (Fisher and Geiselman, 1992) which comprises not only `cognitive' techniques such as context reinstatement but also more `social' communication techniques for increasing rapport. Children (8-9 years) viewed a magic show and were interviewed after a short delay of 2 days (Time 1) and/or a longer delay of 12 days (Time 2). At Time 1 the CI produced a significantly greater amount of correct recall than did a structured interview (SI) which was similar to the CI save for the CI's special cognitive techniques. However, at Time 1 the CI also produced significantly more recall errors. At Time 2, no differences occurred between CI and SI recall. There was a significant hypermnesia effect at Time 2 for those groups interviewed twice suggesting an effect of retrieval practice. The Time 1 effects of the CI were found to exist only in the questioning phase of the interview and social and cognitive explanations for the changes in the nature of recall with a CI are considered. Practical implications are discussed in the context of good practice for interviewing child witnesses.

This study set out to test the prediction that a Cognitive Interview may increase resistance to subsequent misleading suggestions in child witness interviews. The misleading information was presented in the form of questions both prior to, and after, a cognitive or structured interview to 8 and 9 year old witnesses to a video-taped event. Use of the cognitive interview resulted in more correct responses to post-interview questions than did the structured interview eventhough there was not quite a significant effect of the cognitive interview on information recalled during the actual interview. On the basis of their interview performance the children were classified as `intruders' or `non-intruders' (i.e. those children who intruded pre-interview misleading items into the subsequent interview and those who did not). The `non-intruders' made significantly fewer errors on the post-interview questions indicating lower vulnerability to misleading information. Moreover, those children who selected the `don't know' option made fewer errors in the interview and were more accurate in their responses. Theoretical and practical implications of the data are discussed in the context of group differences in vulnerability to suggestion and techniques for increasing resistance to suggestion.

Building and improving investigative interviewing standards is an important topic for police, citizens and finally society. This paper attempts to improve police interviewing of suspects. We further develop the concept of investigative interviewing by linking it to important insights by social movement scholars. Differences in theories reflect different approaches to the interviewing of suspects. In this article, we explore a variety of theories that may improve preparation for the interviewing of suspects. We provide a multidimensional quality and import theories from sociology, psychology and behavioural studies, modifying these to better fit the investigative interviewing of suspects. The main method applied in the paper is content analysis. The article and its conclusions also address the broader implications of understanding the importance of planning for the investigative interviewing of suspects. Results of the study indicate need for actively seeking of best practices of the investigative interviewing of suspects. Understanding what motivates person to commit a crime is also a crucial aspect of police investigation. Findings of the study may serve as impulse for evaluation and improvement of existing practices of interviewing of suspects and contribute to the broader knowledge in this area. The aforementioned represents a good basis for the development of simulation models for the training of investigators.

Pre-interview planning is vital in interviews with suspects. Via a questionnaire administered to 596 police investigators in Singapore, the current study examined potential associations between pre-interview planning, interviewing behaviours and interview outcomes. Interviewing behaviours were hypothesised to mediate the relationship between pre-interview planning and interview outcomes. It is posited that pre-interview planning fosters an investigative mindset, which in turn, influences the nature of interviewing behaviours employed by investigators. The study also sought to provide insights into police interviews with suspects in Singapore, given the limited research from Singapore on the topic. Rapport-based interviewing behaviours were found to mediate the relationship between pre-interview planning and positive interview outcomes, contributing empirical support to the importance of pre-interview planning. In addition, accusatorial interviewing behaviours were associated with negative interview outcomes. This study also found that police investigators in Singapore reported frequent planning prior to their interviews and used rapport-based interviewing behaviours with suspects. These behaviours are in line with the interviewing model adopted in Singapore. Regression analyses showed that participants' endorsement of rapport-based approaches was predicted by investigator experience, confidence, and interview length. Endorsement of pre-planning of interviews was also predicted by investigator confidence and interview length. Implications of these findings are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Non-stranger rape (NSR) cases are often not prosecuted because of the poor quality of the accounts obtained from complainants. However, a growing body of research suggests that such high attrition rates are likely to improve when the quality of these accounts is increased by skilled interviewing. To assist police interviewers in eliciting high-quality accounts, the development of a guide for the interviewing of NSR complainants has recently been recommended. The present study aims to make the first step in developing such a guide. A multidisciplinary literature search was conducted. The newly developed Non-Stranger Rapist-Oriented Interview (NSROI) is specifically designed to promote complainants' disclosure of evidentially relevant information in the form of a clear, chronological and concise narrative (i.e., a high-quality account). The guide is divided into the 'preparatory', 'rape' and 'rape aftermath' phase. The three themes and questions of the first phase focus on revealing the context in which the alleged rape occurred. The five themes and questions of the second phase concentrate on the day of sexual penetration. The third phase's ninth theme and questions focus on the psychological impact of the events on the complainant. The guide includes the following themes: (i) vulnerabilities, (ii) relationship history, (iii) indications of planning and premeditation, (iv) method to gain control, (v) method to keep control, (vi) offered resistance, (vii) sexual acts performed, sequence and degree of penetration, (viii) perpetrator's behaviour after the performed sexual acts and (ix) victim's post-event psychological injury. The potential, implications and limitations of the NSROI are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present article analyses the case law of the Supreme Court of Cassation of the Republic of Serbia regarding the identification of persons conducted in pre-investigation proceedings and investigation by the police. The basic assumption is that the quality and precision of the criminal procedure rules and judgments of the Supreme Court of Cassation additionally determine the police actions in the conditions of expected harmonization of these rules with the most important scientific findings on factors ('system variables') that affect the accuracy of identification. To determine how the case law in Serbia treats certain assertions made in the requests for protection of legality regarding violations of criminal procedure regarding the identification of persons, the present article analyzed 33 judgments issued by the Supreme Court of Cassation regarding these requests in the period from 2013 to 2021. Based on the results of the analysis, recommendations regarding the improvement of the current criminal procedure rules referring to the identification of persons in Serbia were provided, and that by respecting research-informed standards for the collection, preservation, and presentation of identification evidence.

The techniques used to interrogate individuals suspected of a crime can profoundly impact their decisions to confess, cooperate, or disclose information. Research using different methods suggests that two prevailing interrogation approaches—accusatorial and information-gathering—differentially impact interrogation outcomes. However, confession, cooperation, and information disclosure are ultimately the suspected person's decision, yet few studies directly examine their perspectives about how interrogation techniques affect their decisions, and none examine a U.S. sample. This study assessed how interrogation strategies characterized by humanity, rapport, confrontation, and dominance/control predicted interrogation outcomes in a sample of 249 individuals incarcerated in two U.S. jails. Respondents who reported experiencing humane strategies were more likely to confess, cooperate completely, and disclose incriminating information. Dominance/control-oriented strategies predicted partial confession (but not cooperation or disclosure), and rapport-based and confrontational techniques did not predict outcomes. Findings highlight humane interrogation strategies as likely the most productive strategies to adopt in criminal interrogations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently, Henry et al. ("J Autism Dev Disord" 8:2348-2362, 2017) found no evidence for the use of Verbal Labels, Sketch Reinstatement of Context and Registered Intermediaries by forensic practitioners when interviewing children with a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder. We consider their claims, noting the limited ecological validity of the experimental paradigm, the impacts of repeated interviewing where retrieval support is not provided at first retrieval, question the interviewer/intermediary training and their population relevant experience, and comment on the suppression of population variances. We submit that rejecting these techniques on the basis of this study is completely unwarranted and potentially damaging, particularly if used in legal proceedings to undermine the value of testimony from children with ASD, who continually struggle to gain access to justice.

The interviewing of suspects is a key component in the investigation process. Although a great deal of research on interrogation and interviewing techniques has been conducted in the past, much of this work has been undertaken outside South East Asia. This new study examined Malaysian police officers' reported rate of use of a large variety of investigative interviewing techniques categorised into six domains: rapport and relationship building, context manipulation, emotion provocation, confrontation/competition, collaboration and presentation of evidence. Eighty-eight police officers primarily from the criminal investigation department, narcotics crime investigation department, commercial crime investigation department, and traffic enforcement and investigation department participated in a pen-and-paper survey. Findings revealed that many police officers in the current study report adopting investigative interviewing techniques that are largely in line with ethical, non-coercive guidelines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent research consistently indicates that poor justice outcomes for non-stranger rape cases are caused in large part by limitations in the evidential relevance and judicial usefulness of accounts provided by complainants. As direct and other objective corroborating evidence is usually absent, the success of most police investigations and prosecutions of non-stranger rape relies heavily on complainants' accounts. However, no study to date seems to have directly examined how the evidential relevance and judicial usefulness of such accounts can be improved. The present study explored the views of 16 American, Australian and British experts who work in the fields of sexual violence, investigative interviewing and criminal justice, on (a) information that needs to be elicited by police interviewers in order to obtain an evidentially relevant account from non-stranger rape complainants during their investigative interview; (b) requirements regarding a judicially useful account provided by non-stranger rape complainants and how these can be achieved; and (c) whether the current level of police interviewers' knowledge of evidentially relevant and judicially useful accounts employed by them during investigative interviews with non-stranger rape complainants can be improved. And if so, how? Thematic analysis revealed three broad areas for improvements: (i) focus police interviewers' questioning specifically on the legal elements and context of non-stranger rape; (ii) elicit clear, chronological and concise accounts; and (iii) provide evidence-based training and interview guidance. These areas, along with participants' recommendations, are outlined. The implications of the present study and suggestions for future research are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]