2.6: The cognitive interview (CI)

Question 1

Following the recent tiddlywinks contest between the Dexterous Digits and the Knotted Knuckles, there was a mass brawl between rival fans outside the tiddlywinks arena.
Police interviewed witnesses by asking them what they could recall of the incident, but little of value was remembered.

Explain how police officers could possibly have gained more accurate and detailed information from the witnesses by using a cognitive interview (4 marks)

Answer 1

The police could have used the cognitive interview technique to gain more accurate and detailed information from witnesses

Question 2

Following the recent tiddlywinks contest between the Dexterous Digits and the Knotted Knuckles, there was a mass brawl between rival fans outside the tiddlywinks arena.
Police interviewed witnesses by asking them what they could recall of the incident, but little of value was remembered.

Explain how police officers could possibly have gained more accurate and detailed information from the witnesses by using a cognitive interview (4 marks).
The police could have used the cognitive interview technique to gain more accurate and detailed information from witnesses.
What does this technique involve?

Answer 2

This technique involves:

1. Changing the narrative order
2. Changing the perspective
3. Mentally reinstating the context
4. Reporting everything

Question 3

Following the recent tiddlywinks contest between the Dexterous Digits and the Knotted Knuckles, there was a mass brawl between rival fans outside the tiddlywinks arena.
Police interviewed witnesses by asking them what they could recall of the incident, but little of value was remembered.

Explain how police officers could possibly have gained more accurate and detailed information from the witnesses by using a cognitive interview (4 marks).
The police could have used the cognitive interview technique to gain more accurate and detailed information from witnesses.
This technique involves: Changing the narrative order, such as what, changing the perspective, mentally reinstating the context and reporting everything?

Answer 3

This technique involves:

1. Changing the narrative order, such as recalling the incident from the end to the beginning
2. Changing the perspective
3. Mentally reinstating the context
4. Reporting everything

Question 4

Following the recent tiddlywinks contest between the Dexterous Digits and the Knotted Knuckles, there was a mass brawl between rival fans outside the tiddlywinks arena.
Police interviewed witnesses by asking them what they could recall of the incident, but little of value was remembered.

Explain how police officers could possibly have gained more accurate and detailed information from the witnesses by using a cognitive interview (4 marks).
The police could have used the cognitive interview technique to gain more accurate and detailed information from witnesses.
This technique involves: Changing the narrative order, such as recalling the incident from the end to the beginning, changing the perspective, such as what, mentally reinstating the context and reporting everything?

Answer 4

This technique involves:

1. Changing the narrative order, such as recalling the incident from the end to the beginning
2. Changing the perspective, such as getting witnesses to recall from someone else’s viewpoint
3. Mentally reinstating the context
4. Reporting everything

Question 5

Following the recent tiddlywinks contest between the Dexterous Digits and the Knotted Knuckles, there was a mass brawl between rival fans outside the tiddlywinks arena.
Police interviewed witnesses by asking them what they could recall of the incident, but little of value was remembered.

Explain how police officers could possibly have gained more accurate and detailed information from the witnesses by using a cognitive interview (4 marks).
The police could have used the cognitive interview technique to gain more accurate and detailed information from witnesses.
This technique involves: Changing the narrative order, such as recalling the incident from the end to the beginning, changing the perspective, such as getting witnesses to recall from someone else’s viewpoint, mentally reinstating the context, such as what, and reporting everything?

Answer 5

This technique involves:

1. Changing the narrative order, such as recalling the incident from the end to the beginning
2. Changing the perspective, such as getting witnesses to recall from someone else’s viewpoint
3. Mentally reinstating the context, such as recalling environmental and emotional aspects of the incident
4. Reporting everything

Question 6

Following the recent tiddlywinks contest between the Dexterous Digits and the Knotted Knuckles, there was a mass brawl between rival fans outside the tiddlywinks arena.
Police interviewed witnesses by asking them what they could recall of the incident, but little of value was remembered.

Explain how police officers could possibly have gained more accurate and detailed information from the witnesses by using a cognitive interview (4 marks).
The police could have used the cognitive interview technique to gain more accurate and detailed information from witnesses.
This technique involves: Changing the narrative order, such as recalling the incident from the end to the beginning, changing the perspective, such as getting witnesses to recall from someone else’s viewpoint, mentally reinstating the context, such as recalling environmental and emotional aspects of the incident, and reporting everything, however what?

Answer 6

This technique involves:

1. Changing the narrative order, such as recalling the incident from the end to the beginning
2. Changing the perspective, such as getting witnesses to recall from someone else’s viewpoint
3. Mentally reinstating the context, such as recalling environmental and emotional aspects of the incident
4. Reporting everything, however trivial or incomplete it may seem

Question 7

Discuss the effectiveness of the techniques used in the cognitive interview on the accuracy of eyewitness testimony (4 marks)

Answer 7

The cognitive interview is useful with children

Question 8

Discuss the effectiveness of the techniques used in the cognitive interview on the accuracy of eyewitness testimony (4 marks).
The cognitive interview is useful with children, but less useful when?

Answer 8

The cognitive interview is useful with children, but less useful when there is increased time between the event and recall

Question 9

Discuss the effectiveness of the techniques used in the cognitive interview on the accuracy of eyewitness testimony (4 marks).
The cognitive interview is useful with children, but less useful when there is increased time between the event and recall.
What is the cognitive interview better for?

Answer 9

The cognitive interview is better for the recall of peripheral detail than central detail

Question 10

Discuss the effectiveness of the techniques used in the cognitive interview on the accuracy of eyewitness testimony (4 marks).
The cognitive interview is useful with children, but less useful when there is increased time between the event and recall.
The cognitive interview is better for the recall of peripheral detail than central detail.
What did Kohnken et al. (1999) find?

Answer 10

Kohnken et al. (1999) found that cognitive interviews produced more accurate detail, but also more inaccurate detail

Question 11

Discuss the effectiveness of the techniques used in the cognitive interview on the accuracy of eyewitness testimony (4 marks).
The cognitive interview is useful with children, but less useful when there is increased time between the event and recall.
The cognitive interview is better for the recall of peripheral detail than central detail.
Kohnken et al. (1999) found that cognitive interviews produced more accurate detail, but also more inaccurate detail, suggesting what?

Answer 11

Kohnken et al. (1999) found that cognitive interviews produced more accurate detail, but also more inaccurate detail, suggesting that the effectiveness of the techniques used in the cognitive interview could be questioned

Question 12

Explain one way how a cognitive interview differs from a standard interview (4 marks)

Answer 12

One way how a cognitive interview differs from a standard interview is that a standard interview might just ask witnesses to recall an event, but a cognitive interview could ask them to recall the context in which the event occurred.
This could include environmental details (such as the weather) and emotional factors (such as how they felt at the time)