Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Paper - The need for rapport in police interviews

TITLE:
The need for rapport in police interviews

AUTHOR(S):
Roger Collins, Bond University
Robyn Lincoln, Bond University
Mark Frank, Rutgers University

Abstract:
Police interviews try to obtain a narrative of what was observed by witnesses, victims or suspects. Yet there is considerable debate about the most appropriate interview style, the best strategies to use, and the characteristics of interviewers or interviewees that yield the most useful information. Police interviews are integral to criminal investigations where accuracy and completeness are essential if a case is to be solved. They also have evidential ramifications that affect subsequent forensic and trial processes (Fisher et al, 1994; Py et al, 1997; McMahon, 2000; Gudjonsson, 1992).

In addition to the formal interview setting, police engage in “purposive conversations” on a daily basis, which are said to comprise up to 80 percent of their duties (Newberry & Stubbs, 1997). Yet, law enforcement personnel often do not receive adequate training in effective interviewing practices (Wrightsman et al, 1994; Lauchland & Le Brun, 1996). In many cases, there is little formal instruction, with officers learning their interview skills on the job, and this may foster the use of poor methods or result in the loss of potentially valuable information. This limited interview training still occurs for most general duties officers in Australia despite the wealth of research on interview techniques.

Link (PDF downloadable):
http://epublications.bond.edu.au/hss_pubs/38/

Pinky.

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

"Never ever ever talk to the Police"

Haven't you watched enough Law and Order to realize this by now?

The first video is by a law professor discussing why you shouldn't talk to the police, and how anything you say can indeed be used against you regardless of your innocence.

The second video is, more on topic for this blog, about how the police interviews you and get a confession out of you, by a police officer.

http://www.boingboing.net/2008/07/28/law-prof-and-cop-agr.html

Pinky.

Saturday, August 23, 2008

Cool cold reading video

I've seen several videos on cold reading in the past. While basic, this one is quick, dirty, fun and gets the point across in a cute British accent and creative directing.

http://www.videojug.com/film/how-to-be-psychic-cold-reading-techniques

Highly recommended. This is how instructional videos should look like.

Update:
A reader suggested the above video was minimal, barely a glance into the subject. I agree, but like it.

More instructional videos (more like Power Point presentations recorded into videos) on cold reading can be found on YouTube, in four parts:

1. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=labhmXW5VUU
2. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-KWkZ1UqJI
3. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bpIMg5YmUK8
4. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-AL91hPGlto

The most famous text on cold reading is by Ray Hyman, Cold Reading: How to Convince Strangers That You Know All About Them. From “The Outer Edge, Classic Investigations of the Paranormal”:

http://ruahmidbar.files.wordpress.com/2007/11/strangers.doc

And here are Ray Hyman's 13 points in Guide to "Cold Reading":
http://www.skeptics.com.au/articles/coldread.htm

As a final example, check out this excerpt from the film Young Sherlock Holmes, in which an adolescent Watson is given a quick lesson in “simple deduction”.

Other resources are readily available on Google.

Pinky.

Saturday, August 2, 2008

Washington Post flash presentation on Gestures

The story is called "What We Say Without Words", and described:
"Former FBI agent Joe Navarro describes how our torsos, hands, feet and legs frequently communicate emotions that are not put into words."

You can find it here:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/...

Joe Navarro also wrote a book on the subject of Poker body language called Read 'Em and Reap: A Career FBI Agent's Guide to Decoding Poker Tells with Phil Hellmuth.

Pinky.

Hostage negotiations

I recently started paying more attention to hostage negotiation after watching the new TV show Flashpoint.

Hostage negotiation is a difficult and complex task, and systems exist to aide the negotiator in everything from preventing escalation of the situation to creating rapport, all in the goal of closing, bringing the incident to a peaceful ending.

Reading about the subject, I found these articles most interesting, and more importantly, concise:

1. HowStuffWork entry on hostage negotiation
A good introduction to the subject and the system, with historical background and a bit on the Stockholm syndrome.

From the article above:
Stockholm Syndrome
Spending hours, days and months together doesn't only foster feelings on the part of the hostage-taker toward the hostages. The hostages often develop sympathy for their captors, as well. This is known as Stockholm Syndrome, named after a Swedish bank heist gone wrong that resulted in a six-day stand-off. The hostages ended up assisting the robber, acting as lookouts and giving him advice, while gradually coming to view the police outside as their common enemy. One of the female hostages even married him while he was still in prison.

There are complicated psychological reasons for Stockholm Syndrome. It is in part a defense mechanism that allows people to cope with an otherwise unbearable situation. It also has something to do with power -- the hostage-taker has the power to kill the hostages, and when he doesn't, the hostages' relief can turn into gratitude, which eventually develops into sympathy. Also, fear of the police rushing into the situation and killing the hostages accidentally in a shootout is very powerful and helps turn the hostages against the authorities.

2. From The Negotiator Magazine: Negotiation Lessons Learned by an FBI Hostage Negotiator
On hostage negotiations from the perspective of an FBI expert, comparing the task to his previous occupation, sales.

Some key quotes:
We, negotiators and sales people, know that our subjects and clients sometimes behave in seemingly irrational ways. We know how difficult it is to be truly heard or understood. Not matter how difficult the client or subject, we must remember that this negotiation is not about you, the negotiator or salesperson. It is about the subject or client and his or her needs. This point is may be hard to keep in mind especially when the client is nasty, insulting or worse.

Likewise, there is more to sales than just the marketing department and sales personnel. Everyone in the organization must be saying the same thing; from the CEO to even cleaning personnel. Cleaning personnel talking between themselves on an elevator in the presence of a potential client can derail a deal as quickly as a poor salesperson. A failure to recognize this point can be and has been costly in terms of lives and money.

Albert Einstein once said, “Make everything as simple as possible but not simpler.” There are many smart people in the FBI and in your corporation who will come up with complex answers to problems. The secret is in looking for simple answers from smart people! Those are the answers in which I have the most confidence. During an aircraft hijacking, FBI agents at the scene were concerned about a long coat the hijacker was wearing. It was speculated that the hijacker might have a bomb under the coat. Later, when asked why that particular coat was worn to the airport she said, “It was cold and it is the only coat I own.”

“Pushing the deal” for law enforcement negotiators is analogous to pushing for a close on a sale before the client is ready to close. Negotiators offer the “deal” at the outset but if the deal is declined, negotiators back off and begin the negotiation process. “Pushing the deal” too hard early-on builds distrust and people “dig in” against you.

Negotiators in the United States are taught that early on and, if appropriate, not to forget to ask the subject to come out. There have been instances in the United States when after negotiating for ten hours the subject finally surrendered. When asked why he did not come out sooner, the subject replied, “Nobody asked.”

Negotiators should listen for unspoken needs. One indicator that there are expressive needs not being met is when all of the instrumental needs have been met and a client still will not close a deal.

Expressive needs can be very personal. The subject's shift from instrumental needs to expressive needs may indicate the development of trust and rapport and, therefore, progress in the negotiation.

In conclusion, I believe that there are many more parallels between what law enforcement negotiators and business people do; far more than can be covered in a short article. The most significant parallel is that law enforcement negotiators and salespeople are both selling hope. The negotiator and salesperson are both selling the hope that the subject's or client's future will be better. In this writer's view, there is no more worthwhile product.


Pinky.