Cognitive Interveiw

Question 1

what is cognitive interview?

Answer 1

Ed Geiselman and Ron Fischer developed this interview to enhance the interviewee’s memory performance in the interview

The aim was to increase quality and the quantity of the information.

Question 2

Elements of a cognitive interview

Answer 2

the interviewer tries to mentally reinstate the context of the crime for the witnesses (asking them about their feelings on the day etc.)

witnesses are asked to report the incident from another perspective- (describing what other witnesses might have seen etc.)

recounting the incident in another narrative order. witnesses are also encouraged to work backwards from the end to the beginning.

witnesses are asked to report every detail. unimportant details might trigger key information about the event that witnesses may have forgotten about.