cognitive interview Flashcards
who proposed the cognitive interview
Fisher and Geiselman argued eyewitness testimony could be improved.
what is a cognitive interview?
a method of interviewing eyewitnesses to help them retrieve more accurate memories
recall report everything
witnesses are encouraged to include every single detail.Trivial details may trigger other important memories
recall reinstate the context
visually the witness’s should return to the original crime scene and imagine the environment and their emotions(context dependent forgetting)
recall reverse the order
events should be recalled in non -chronological order to prevent people from reporting their expectations of the event rather than the actual event and it also prevents dishonesty.
recall change the persepective
witness should recall the event from other people’s perspective.This is done to disrupt the effect of expectations and schema on recall
describe the enhanced cognitive interview
focuses on when to use eye contact and when to not, asking open ended questions, reducing anxiety, minimising distractions
evaluation: strength
support for the effectiveness of the ECI
Kohnken et al combined data from 50 studies(meta analysis).The ECI consistently provided more correct information than the standard police interview.This shows that there are real practical benefits to the police ,it gives police more accurate information to catch and charge criminals.
evaluation: limitation
can be very time consuming
If it is used wrong or conducted incorrectly then it can cause more inaccurate recall therefore the police have to be especially trained for this. This can be time consuming and cost effective as well as it takes longer to train them.
evaluation: evidence for its effectivness, fisher et al
In a real-life test, Fisher et al. trained detectives from the Miami Police Department to use the cognitive interview. Police interviews with
eyewitnesses and victims were videotaped and the total number of statements was scored. A second eyewitness was then asked to confirm
whether these were true or false
what are the findings of fisher et al support
Compared to the standard procedure used, the cognitive interview produced 46% increase in recall and 90% accuracy. The findings suggested that the cognitive interview is more effective than the standard interview, producing higher recall and reducing error.
evaluation: useful when interviewing older witnesses
Wright and Holliday found that the older the participant, the less complete and accurate the recall but when they used the CI technique, the older participants recalled significantly greater detail without giving any false information.
Therefore, the CI can be used to ensure that all eyewitness testimony is as accurate as possible to avoid a possible age bias on recall.
