Cognitive Interview Techniques

Cognitive interview techniques as taught by police forces are extremely effective at establishing full and accurate facts from the witnesses to incidents. The human brain is very efficient at blocking out sights/sounds/smells and experiences that it finds distressing or disturbing. It is common for a person to block out unpleasant sights and later to "rationalise" what must have happened - in their opinion! Witnesses then can be unreliable and may see different things that may or may not have happened. They may even have only seen part of an incident an rationalised those events they missed in the same way. To relive an event is a highly effective way of overcoming these shortcomings.

The police will carry out such techniques normally in pairs so as no irregularity can be inferred. It is my view that the technique conducted efficiently is tantamount to hypnosis. Whilst the police may be conducting such an interview following a serious incident or accident and such measures are called for this may not be necessary in the type of interview you may be asked to carry out. Therefore whilst it is unlikely that you will consider it necessary or even possible to carry out such a technique it is much more likely that the basic ideas are used rather than a strict adherence to the procedure.

It is especially important to realize that any reliving of an incident that an individual has found traumatic can at best be a bit upsetting but at worst dangerous to a person's mental health. The police will often have trained counsellors on hand to deal with any possible detrimental consequence. Therefore be aware that a person involved in an accident or a witness to an accident may well already be traumatised and the more he relives or recounts the story the more difficult he may find it. Conversely it has been my experience that psychologists have actually recommended providing statements in civil procedures to solicitors and investigators as good therapy in moving their lives onward.

Each person is different and demands respect, sympathy and as much time as is necessary for them to be able to recount their story in full. Always keeping in the forefront of your mind the possible effects such an interview may have on the person concerned. The following is a brief guide that is issued to police officers and which I have modified to deal with our likely interviewees.

Identify yourself and establish how the client/witness wishes to be known.
Show your appreciation for attending or volunteering information.
Relax person by talking generally about the incident or any other subject that will help that person to like, respect and trust you.
Explain your role and involvement with the case.
Explain how long you anticipate the interview will take, check that person has time to carry out the interview and that he/she does not require refreshment or welfare need.
Reassure client and allay any anxiety.
Explain reasons for the investigation, emphasizing the importance of the person's role.
Explain that it may help to obtain a detailed account by encouraging them to relieve the incident.
Explain that the information will be obtained slowly with minimal interruption.
That they will be required to recount the whole event in context.
They will be asked to recall the whole event again in more detail.
That you will probe some aspects of their memory in greater detail.
Then commit to paper.

It is worth telling the person that this can be very hard work for them requiring considerable concentration and that they should say so when they have had enough and need a break. It can be easier if the person closes their eyes or focuses on a fixed point as this helps to visualise and recall. Expect pauses and periods of silence, listen and take notes, you may summarize from time to time to check accuracy.

Control the situation with reasoned and quite comments:

The person should speak slowly and take their time, there is no rush.
They should try and mentally relieve the event.
They should not leave anything out, no matter how unimportant it may seem.
They should not guess or speculate.
They should ask questions if required.
They should be confident to ask for a break if necessary.

A successful interview will consist of the following elements:

The greetings
The reasons
The route map
The expectations
The routines

Cognitive interview techniques were applicable to civil litigation matters are restricted due to the type of interview carried out and the possible after effects for the interviewee. There is no follow-up support for those who find the recall of an incident detrimental to their mental state after such an interview has taken place. The interviewer is the only person who can judge the extent to which an individual is being effected as the interview progresses and therefore it is the responsibility of the interviewer to exercise considerable care and restraint when attempting to use these techniques.

At any interview the basics are of considerable use to the interviewer, to win over the person to be interviewed will always lead to more co-operation and therefore a more detailed account of events. The 5 points above are an excellent guide to the structure of the good interview.