Interviewing to Elicit Cues to Deception: Improving Strategic Use of Evidence with General-To-Specific Framing of Evidence

Previous research has demonstrated that the strategic use of evidence (SUE) approach of interviewing criminal suspects is effective at eliciting cues to deception. This study aims at expanding on the SUE approach by testing the technique of general-to-specific evidence framing. We conducted an experiment using a mock terrorism paradigm. Guilty participants took part in a simulated act of terrorism, while innocent participants performed a similar act involving no transgression. All participants (N?=?102) were then interviewed using one of four evidence disclosure styles (early disclosure, late disclosure, 2-step disclosure, or 4-step disclosure). We expected that disclosing evidence to the suspect gradually, with increasing specificity, would induce guilty suspects to alter their statements to a greater extent than innocent suspects. General-to-specific evidence framing effectively discriminated between guilty and innocent suspects, but results only partially supported the hypotheses.     

Recognition of previous eyewitness testimony from an altered interrogation protocol: Potential effects of distortions

Abstract

The effect of protocol presentation on witnesses’ tendency to point out errors in a transcribed version of their verbal testimony was examined in two experiments. Participants were shown a film depicting a robbery and were subsequently questioned. In the process of typing out the testimony, there were six distortions entered into the protocol. When participants were asked to check the content for approval, they either listened to the experimenter reading the protocol out aloud, or read it on their own. The results showed that witnesses who had listened to the content being read to them pointed out significantly fewer distortions, and suggest that protocol presentation may have important implications for the justice system.     

Guilty and innocent suspects’ strategies during police interrogations

Abstract

Deception detection has largely failed to investigate guilty and innocent suspects’ strategies. In this study, mock suspects (n=82) were interrogated by police trainees (n=82) who either were or were not trained in the technique to strategically use the evidence (the SUE technique). Analyses revealed that guilty suspects to a higher degree than innocent suspects applied strategies in order to appear truthful. Guilty suspects reported diverse strategies, while innocent suspects reported the strategy to tell the truth like it had happened, indicating a belief in the visibility of innocence. The realism in the suspects’ expectation about how their veracity was judged was largely dependent on the way in which they had been interrogated. The truth-telling suspects who were interrogated according to the SUE technique were optimistic about being judged as truthful; this optimism was warranted as the vast majority of them were classified as truthful. The SUE technique seems to help (a) spotting guilty suspects without them being aware of it and (b) spotting innocent suspects, and they become aware of it. That innocent (but not guilty) suspects can read how the interrogator views them is advantageous for the investigative process.     

Detecting deception in suspects: verbal cues as a function of interview strategy

Research on deception has consistently shown that people are poor at detecting deception, partly due to lack of consistent cues to deception. This research focuses on eliciting verbal cues to deception when questioning suspects who deny crime and how such cues differ due to type of questioning. An experiment examined verbal differences between innocent and guilty mock suspects (N=96) as a function of veracity and interview style (Free recall, Probes, or Free recall plus Probes). Guilty (vs innocent) suspects omitted more crime-relevant information and their statements were more likely to contradict the evidence, showing that statement–evidence inconsistency was a cue to deception. This cue to deception was more pronounced when the interview contained probes. Lie-catchers (N=192) obtained an accuracy rate higher than chance (61.5%) for detecting deceptive denials. Implications for further research on verbal cues to deception are discussed.     

Privatizing state owned enterprises in Latin America: A research agenda

This paper identifies major areas related to the privatization of state owned enterprises in Latin America that could very well be applied to other regions of the world, as more countries try to allow the private sector to play a larger role in their economies.     

Measuring intra-generational redistribution in PAYG pension schemes

Public Choice - Voters in ageing societies expect pension reforms to be both inter-generationally and intra-generationally fair. In this paper, we propose a global measure of intra-generational...     

Suicidal burrowing behavior--a special kind of the "hide-and-die-syndrome"

When the situation at a death scene is unusual, this may suggest the involvement of another person. On the other hand, one also has to consider the possibility of a conscious or unconscious behavior in connection with extreme stress situations or suicidal acts. The forensic findings and criminalistic reconstruction of two cases of suicidal burrowing behavior are presented and discussed.