Interviewing Flashcards
What are the 3 different types of interviews?
1) Witness/Victim
2) Suspect/Accused
3) Complainant
What is the definition of an interview?
A conversation conducted with a person from whom information is sought related to an event under investigation
**What are the 3 types of memory?
Sensory- interprets all of the sensory information and passes it onto the short-term memory
Short-term (working)- has 2 functions. Making sense of the information it receives from sensory and controlling what information should be stored in long-term memory
Long Term- Occurs when a person makes a conscious or unconscious effort to pay attention to a particular piece of information or an event, long enough for the brain the process the information and move it from short-term memory to long-term memory
**What are the 3 stages of memory?
Encoding- 1st stage where information is entered into memory
Storing- This is the second stage where information retained in memory
Retrieval- This is the 3rd stage of the process where information recovered from memory
**What are the 4 factors that affect memory processing?
Attention: The brain has a limited capacity to retain information, which is why people are only able to pay attention to and remember a limited number of details about a crime
Stress: Mixed research results
Drugs and alcohol: When under the influence, witnesses remember fewer details
Weapon Focus: When a weapon is used, witnesses may pay close attention to it, making them less likely to encode or remember other details about the crime they witnessed
What are 3 interviewing room considerations?
Safety:
Available Exit:
Comfort: Create a relaxed atmosphere
What are 4 skills for a quality interview (witness)?
Planning & Preparation: Objective, checklist, arrangement, questions
Rapport: Create an informal and relaxed environment, that encourages witnesses to do the majority of the talking. Handshakes, eye contact
Effective listening: Speak less, listen more, eye contact, neutral prompts, summarizing, reflecting, encouragement, silence
Effective Questioning: Quality of questions (TED) Tell, explain describe
What is the goal of building a rapport?
Create an informal and relaxed context
Encourage the witness to do the majority of the talking
Convey an understanding and non-judgmental approach
What are two techniques for rapport building?
1) Introduce yourself
2) Be genuine and personal
**What does TED stand for?
Tell me
Explain to me
Describe to me
**What are the 7 steps of the Structured Interview Process when interviewing a suspect?
1) Preparation- Witness statements, videos, maps, incident reports, information from others
- Preparation Consideration- prior encounters with police, outstanding warrants?
2) Introduction- Should be professional and should reflect that you are going to be fair. Consider how you provide your own name (rank etc)
3) Purpose- (goals) Determine what the suspect understanding of the purpose of the interview is. Clarify and establish what is being investigated
4) Rapport/Background- The process of building rapport with a suspect begins at the point of the first contact. Suspects can be just as anxious as witnesses.
5) Version Development- Remain quiet and listen. The amount and quality of information that is extracted can greatly depend on the skills of the officer and how well they are prepared for the interview. “What else”
6) Assess- It is important to always review and assess the progress to understand what has been learned.
7) Close- express your appreciation to the witness for their participation, encourage witness to stay in contact and provide you with a follow up.
What are 4 goals when conducting an interview?
1) Gain the trust and cooperation of the subject
2) Obtain complete and accurate information
3) Obtain Commitment from the subject
4) Have a flexible, formatted approach
What does PEACE stand for?
Preparation
Engage and Explain
Account
Closure
Evaluation
What types of questions should we be asking? (3)
1) Quality questions - TED
2) Open-ended questions
3) Closed questions - only to confirm information
What is the primary focus of a structure interview?
Gather information.
