Interviewing

Question 1

What is altruism?

Answer 1

Interviewer must offer a morally acceptable reason that allows the accused to confess to a misdeed without feeling ashamed. In many cases, the moral seriousness of the matter can be reduced by claiming the action was for the benefit of others.

Question 2

What information should be obtained during a verbal confession?

Answer 2

(1) admission that the accused knew the conduct in question was wrong
(2) Facts known only to the confessor (e.g., estimates of the number of instances and the total amount of money involved)
(3) The accused’s motive for the offense
(4) The approximate date and time that the offense started and was terminated
(5) Information about the involvement of others
(6) Physical evidence
(7) Information about what happened to any illicit income derived from the misdeeds
(8) Information about any residual assets that the confessor can use to reduce losses
(9) Information about the specifics of each offense

Question 3

What are closed questions?

Answer 3

questions are those that require a precise answer, such as “yes” or “no.”

Closed questions also deal with specifics, such as amounts, dates, and times.

Question 4

What are complex questions?

Answer 4

questions are those that consist of a series of interrelated questions.

For example: “What are your duties here, and how long have you been employed?”

Question 5

What are leading questions?

Answer 5

questions that are framed in a way that evokes a specific reply from the respondent; they are questions that contain a suggested answer.

Leading questions imply that the interviewer already knows the answer, asking the subject to confirm what is already known.

Question 6

What points are needed when reducing a suspects verbal confession into a written statement?

Answer 6

The signed statement should contain

(1) language expressly stating that the confessor is voluntarily making the confession.
(2) the subject knowingly and intentionally committed the act and that the subject knew the act was wrong
(3) the approximate dates of the offense, the approximate amounts of losses, and the approximate number of instances
(4) the subject’s willingness to cooperate
(5) the confessor’s moral excuse
(6) The confessor must acknowledge that he read the statement, and he should initial all the pages of the statement

Question 7

What is an inhibitor?

Answer 7

any social-psychological barrier that impedes the flow of relevant information by making the respondent unable or unwilling to provide the information to the interviewer

Question 8

What are nonverbal clues?

Answer 8

clues that are illustrated by an individual’s body language

Nonverbal indications of deception include:

• Full-body motions away from the interviewer
• Physical responses such as sweating or labored breathing
• Changes in the use of illustrators
• Interruptions to the flow of speech
• Hands over the mouth
• Manipulation of objects such as a pencil
• Body positioned in a fleeing position
• Crossing of the arms
• Unnatural or casual reaction to evidence

Question 9

what are controlled answer techniques?

Answer 9

may be used to stimulate a desired answer or impression.

These techniques direct the interview toward a specific point

Question 10

What are facilitators of communication?

Answer 10

social-psychological forces that make conversations, including interviews, easier to accomplish

These facilitators require a basic understanding of what motivates people

The facilitators are:

• fulfilling expectations
• recognition,
• altruistic appeals,
• sympathetic understanding,
• new experience,
• catharsis,
• need for meaning
• extrinsic rewards.

Question 11

What are five general types of questions an interviewer can ask?

Answer 11

introductory

informational

assessment

closing

admission-seeking.

Question 12

What are three general approaches to obtaining the verbal confession?

Answer 12

chronologically, by transaction, or by even

Question 13

What purpose do closing questions serve?

Answer 13

1 - reconfirm facts

2 - gather additional facts

3 - conclude the interview in a manner required to maintain goodwill.

Question 14

What are the designed purposes of asking introductory questions?

Answer 14

designed to meet four objectives:

(1) to provide an introduction
(2) to establish rapport
(3) to get the respondent to agree verbally to cooperate in the interview (i.e., establish the interview theme)
(4) to observe the respondent’s reactions to questions.

Question 15

What is an admission-seeking interview ?

Answer 15

admission-seeking interview is designed to obtain a legal admission of wrongdoing

seeks to clear an innocent person and encourage a culpable person to confess

designed to convince the confessor to sign a written statement acknowledging the facts

Question 16

What are verbal clues?

Answer 16

refer to how an individual conveys information vocally, including tone, pitch, volume, and rate of speech; verbal clues are not only about word choice

Changes in speech patterns (e.g., changes in voice pitch)

Comments regarding the interview

Oaths

Question 17

Whens should an interviewer ask admission-seeking questions?

Answer 17

when all of the following are true:

There is a reasonable probability that the respondent has committed the act in question.

All other reasonable investigative steps have been completed and as much information as possible has been developed from other sources.

The interviewer can reasonably control the interview’s place, time, and subject matter.

Question 18

What does calibrating the witness mean?

Answer 18

Calibrating (or norming) is the process of observing behavior before critical questions are asked.

best way to calibrate a witness is through the use of noncritical questions on background information, place of employment, and the lik

Question 19

What is catharsis?

Answer 19

Catharsis is the process by which a person obtains a release from unpleasant emotional tensions by talking about the source of these tensions.

Question 20

What is inferential confusion?

Answer 20

denotes confusion and inaccuracies resulting from errors of inference

these errors generally fall into two categories: induction or deduction.

Induction occurs when the respondent is asked to convert concrete experiences into a higher level of generalization.

Deduction occurs when the respondent is asked to give concrete examples of certain categories of experience.

Question 21

what are assessment questions?

Answer 21

seek to establish the respondent’s credibility

used only when the interviewer considers previous statements by the respondent to be inconsistent because of possible deception.