COGNITIVE INTERVIEWS

• Stage 1 of cognitive interviews


  Context reinstatement – recall the scene, the weather, what you were thinking and feeling – enhances recall as it acts as cues. 
• Stage 2 of cognitive interviews


  Report everything – report every detail even if it seems irrelevant or trivial – might not realise that some details are important. 
• Stage 3 of cognitive interviews


  Recall from a changed perspective – describe the event as seen from a different viewpoint – encourages many retrieval paths. 
• Stage 4 of cognitive interviews


  Recall in reverse order – describe the event in reverse order – in forward order, witnesses reconstruct events based on schemas. If the order is changed the recall will be more accurate. 
• Evaluation of cognitive interviews:

  ✅ Research into effectiveness – KOHNKEN ET AL completed meta-analysis of 53 studies and found a 34% increase in correct recall when compared to standard interviewing techniques 

  ❌ FISHER ET AL – modified technique to GEISELMANN – no distractions, active listening, open questions. Produced a higher mean rate of correct statements. 

  ❌ Police personnel must be trained – expensive and time consuming 

  ❌ Helps to increase recall of peripheral information rather than central details.