Ethical interviewing

Question 1

why may ethical interviewing be difficult

Answer 1

• crime in question may be shocking
• interviewer may not be immune to such issues

Question 2

who is responsible for maintaining an ethical interviewing

Answer 2

the interviewer

Question 3

why is ethical interviewing beneficial

Answer 3

• more likely to get valid information
• than if interviewer brings their own judgement into the interviewing process
• there has to be a ‘due process’

Question 4

due process

Answer 4

• criminal justice system tends to have the power in the situation
• such as where someone is being interviewed before possibly being charged
• however individual has rights which must be adhered to

Question 5

what concept do ethical interviews focus on

Answer 5

• focus on rapport because it leads to trust
• which reduces anxiety & distress in a suspect
• meaning info is more likely to be disclosed

Question 6

6 ethical standards related to crime

Answer 6

• every human has worth = treat with dignity
• interviewers must be carried out in a non-judgemental way
• interviewers can’t affect the interview - no coercion & material cannot be suppressed
• use differing methods of gathering information
• truth must be focused - not confession
• those with special needs must be treated with additional care - consider their needs

Question 7

issues with traditional interviewing techniques

Answer 7

• confirmation bias
• culture
• interrogation
• leading questions
• manipulation, e.g false promises & wrongful convictions
• until 1930s = beatings & torture
• aggressive questioning techniques, ie exposure to bright lights

Question 8

confirmation bias

Answer 8

• questioning & interpreting information provided during the interview as a confirmation of interviewers existing beliefs or case theories

Question 9

culture affecting traditional interviewing methods

Answer 9

• primary influence in dysfunctional & unethically conducted investigations
• how interviews were conducted with witnesses & suspects being the only objective view of interview

Question 10

why did the style of interviews change

Answer 10

• in 1970s/80s National Court of Appeal decided many high profile cases regarding serious crimes had made confessions that were not voluntary
• so a collaborative effort between law enforcement & psychologists in England & Wales developed an investigative interviewing framework to prevent false confessions
• that were the result of accusatory style interviews
• to make interviews less confrontational & more transparent

Question 11

Roberts 1992

Answer 11

• carried out a review in UK
• as 1960s behaviours of police regarding arrest & interviewing of suspects was of concern
• cited studies like Baldwin 1992 & reported many of these issues were also found when witnesses to a crime were interviewed
• reported lots of studies showing same thing about interviewing being accusatory & persuasive
• also found when interviewers were seen as weak & used an info gathering approach it increased chance of suspect giving an account for the event

Question 12

Baldwin 1992

Answer 12

• looked at 400 videos & 200 audio recordings of interviews carried out by police
• concluded interview standards were low

Question 13

what interviewing issues did Baldwin find

Answer 13

• no rapport being developed
• looking for a confession
• trying to get suspect to accept interviewers version of events
• interviewers did not listen to suspect & interrupted
• some were aggressive & provocative & some used macho approach

Question 14

ethical issues with traditional interviewing styles

Answer 14

• suspects not protected from harm = mental pressure - laboured & persistent questioning
• debrief = lack of preparation
• right to withdraw - persistent questioning does not allow someone to withdraw

Question 15

Baldwin - conclusion

Answer 15

• reflected that police practice & interviews were often led, directly or indirectly
• highlighting need to train investigators to always conduct interviews with professionalism & integrity

Question 16

PEACE model

Answer 16

• a widely praised interviewing model
• adopted by numerous law enforcement, regulatory agencies, private & public sectors throughout world in conducting investigative interviews

Question 17

Savage & Milne 2007

Answer 17

• PEACE model was the Uk’s effort to conduct ethical interviews
• the structure of it allows trust to be built
• so offender feels their needs are being listened to & considered

Question 18

PEACE - Stands for

Answer 18

• Planning & preparation
• Engage & explain
• Account
• Closure
• Evaluate

Question 19

Planning & preparation

Answer 19

• create & record interview
• introduction & rapport
• consider all available information & identifies key issues & objectives
• create & record interview plan
• look at characteristics of interviewee

Question 20

Engage & explain

Answer 20

• engage interviewee
• included reasons (objectives) & routines (expectations)
• identify topics during interview & manage conversation

Question 21

Account

Answer 21

• take & develop an account
• review & select a topic to probe
• introduce investigator topics
• challenge / clarify answers
• in a supporting & initiating manner

Question 22

Closure

Answer 22

• any questions interviewee gives should be dealt with

Question 23

Evaluate

Answer 23

• evaluate information, investigation & interviewer
• determine other things that was dealt with in interviewer

Question 24

PEACE framework diagram - lines linking phases of interview

Answer 24

• solid lines indicate a natural forward movement from 1 phase to the next, ie. purpose of an interview may need repetition throughout interview
• dotted line indicates there may need to be a re-open discussion of interviewees account, ie. closure links back to accpunt, probing & challenge
• when this happens you may naturally return to the account, probing & challenge stage
• remember there are no rigid boundaries between phases & flexibility is needed throughout
• time should be spent on each phase but no rigid boundaries exist between phases

Question 25

ethical interviewing linked to BPS

Answer 25

- every human being has worth & should be treated with dignity - an interview must be carried out in a non-judgemental way, with openness & treat interviewees in a fair way - interviewers must not affect interview or data gathered, interviews must not involve coercion - interviewers should use different ways of getting information - there should be no shortcuts in an interview - anyone with special needs of any sort should be treated with additional care - interviewers should not bring false information or use deception, e.g 'we know you were there'

Question 26

Roberts 2011 - aim

Answer 26

- identified risks in terrorism suspect interviews - to promote ethical interview tactics - to increase cultural awareness & preparation

Question 27

Roberts 2011 - method

Answer 27

-conceptual analysis = looks at risks inherent in terrorist suspect interviews - draws on existing legal framework, ie UK law

Question 28

Roberts 2011 - results

Answer 28

- use of aggressive interviewing strategies is likely to result in unreliable information - can be detrimental to police community relations

Question 29

Walsh & Milne 2010 - aims

Answer 29

- test whether interviews following PEACE model get better outcomes - evaluate impact of interviewer skill on outcomes

Question 30

Walsh & Milne - method

Answer 30

- content analysis of 99 audiotaped interviews with benefit fraud suspects - comparison between officers trained in the PEACE strategy & a control group

Question 31

Walsh & Milne - results

Answer 31

- interviewers often failed to use PEACE correctly - many interviews relied heavily on poor question types - rapport building was often inadequate but essential

Question 32

Strengths - ethical interviewing

Answer 32

- little need to separate PEACE model / ethical interviewing & moral/ethical success - ethical interviewing is detailed & adheres to ethical guidelines = ethical & collects in depth data = valid due to better analysis - Fisher & Geiseiman - traditional interviewing is confrontational & confession seeking - suspect is ignored & it is unethical

Question 33

Fisher & Geiseiman

Answer 33

- say rapport improves interview in terms of information yielded

Question 34

ethical interviewing - weaknesses

Answer 34

- Walsh & Milne 2010 - difficult to judge effectiveness of ethical implications as little research found - police are often sure of suspects of guilt - Stephenson & Motson

Question 35

Walsh & Milne

Answer 35

- show despite it being chosen by British police force - after training interviewers are not good at building rapport

Question 36

Stephenson & Motson

Answer 36

- 1067 solved police cases found interviewers were sure of guilt of suspect in 73% cases & in 99% of these evidence is strong - brings question is persuasive interviewing more effective than ethical interviewing ?

Question 37

why may interrogation be less successful than ethical interviewing

Answer 37

- interrogations use high pressure tactics that reduce accuracy - as stress, intimidation & leading questions are used - increasing risk of false information - may lead to more false confessions as suspect feels forced by police to falsely confess

Question 38

applications

Answer 38

- police officers may need more training - better pre-planning needed - advice to managers of who should interview

Question 39

police officers may need more training -

Answer 39

- police officers need to develop skill of how to build rapport with suspects & carry out interview in a non-judgemental way - so interview can have more openness

Question 40

better pre-planning needed -

Answer 40

- interviews need to consider whether the suspects have special needs - or require additional care in interviews to support them

Question 41

advice to managers of who should interview -

Answer 41

- interviewers must tell the truth - be non judgemental towards suspect