Improving Eyewitness Testimony: Cognitive Interview - Evaluation

Question 1

What are some limitations of the cognitive interview?

Answer 1

• Time-consuming
• Requires CI training
• Often not used properly by police

Most police forces have limited training time, affecting implementation
- most likely an unrealistic method for police officers to use

Question 2

What did Kohnken et al (1999) find in their meta-analysis?

as a strength of ECI and CI

Answer 2

A 41% increase in accurate information from CI consistently compared to standard interviews

This study included 55 studies and shows practical benefits of using CI.

• better chance of catching and charging criminals
• helps oficers avoid leading questions and misleading info
• based on Tulving’s ESP

Question 3

What are some strengths of the cognitive interview?

Answer 3

• Each stage is valuable when used separately
• The first two stages improve recall significantly
• Increases credibility

Milne and Bull (2002) highlighted these strengths in their findings.

Question 4

What is a counterpoint regarding the cognitive interview?

Answer 4

Doubt on the overall credibility of the cognitive interview

Some researchers question the reliability of the method.

Question 5

What limitation did Kohnken et al identify about the enhanced cognitive interview?

Answer 5

It may increase the amount of inaccurate information recalled

ECI produced more incorrect details than CI

Possibly CI sacrifice quality (accuracy) for the amount of details
- Police officers should treat eyewitness evidence from CI/ECIs with caution