Cognitive Interviews

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According to ACPO (as cited in Dando, Wilcock, & Milne, 2008), the current method for training police force in the effective application of investigative interviewing is PEACE, which has been adopted across England and Wales. Its emphasis is on the development of professional skills and providing guidance for officers through the interview process. The method introduces two styles for different types of witnesses- the cognitive interview for co-operative individuals and conversation management for more resistant. However, beside the wealth of empirical support, the cognitive interview and the training provided has been criticised by the police force. For example, a study by Dando, Wilcock and Milne (2008) found that the least trained and experienced interviewers reported feelings of inadequate training, being under pressure and not being prepared to conduct a PEACE cognitive interview in general.
The effectiveness of cognitive interview in use with children has been demonstrated by Verkampt and Ginet (2010). They have investigated children's recall and suggestibility levels by measuring the usefulness of
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During the experiment, participants have viewed a film of a staged theft and then were interviewed using either the cognitive or the structured interview. The findings suggested that the correct memory recall of adults with intellectual disability can be enhanced by using the cognitive interview technique, without impacting on the accuracy or confabulation of information. Furthermore, when compared to the structured interview, it enhanced the correct recall of person, action and conversation, suggesting that adults with intellectual disability who have been victims of both physical and verbal crimes can benefit from it by being able to recall more details of the