Qualitative analysis of qualitative evaluation: an exploratory examination of investigative interviewers’ reflections on their performance

Self-evaluation of interviews conducted by law enforcement professionals is a principal feature of a prescribed interview framework in England and Wales, underpinning their practice development. However, self-evaluation has been found in prior research to be neglected. Building on our recent study (which found that interviewers regularly over-rated themselves, when compared to our independent ratings), the same interviewers assessed their interview skills by way of completing an extensive reflective log. We found that those we regarded as skilled in our prior study tended to be more accurate in identifying their strengths and areas for improvement, while planning to correct such shortfalls in their future practice. On the other hand, those we had earlier rated as least skilled tended to be much less reflective, being both descriptive and inaccurate in their understanding of key interview tasks. They also remained inaccurate concerning their own interview skills, failing to be prospective in planning to improve their skills. As such, while reflective logs appear to be, for skilled interviewers, both a prompt for accurate self-assessment and a catalyst for planning further professional development, we also caution that such tools need further refinement to achieve the same goals for those either less reflective or less skilled.N/

Self-disclosure and self-deprecating self-reference: Conversational practices of personalization in police interviews with children reporting alleged sexual offenses

This article examines how police officers ostensibly reveal personal information about themselves in investigative interviews with children reporting their being victim of alleged sexual offenses. We identify two practices of personalization. First, we show how, during the opening phase of interviews, officers engage in clear, unambiguous self-disclosure and how these self-disclosures are designed to elicit expressions of affiliation from witnesses. Second, we identify instances of self-deprecating self-reference as in ‘I’m going deaf that's all’. These self-references are delivered to manage trouble responsibility in environments of repair. We show how they manage the conflicting demands of rapport building and the requirement to make interviewees feel as if they are being listened to and understood, on the one hand, and the need for effective evidence gathering, on the other. The present study extends understanding of how officers personalize the investigative interview, as recommended by best practice guidelines.N/

Evaluating interviews which search for the truth with suspects: but are investigators’ self-assessments of their own skills truthful ones?

Self-evaluation of one’s own performance has been found in prior research to be an enabler of professional development. The task of evaluation is also a core component of a model of the investigative interviewing of victims, witnesses and suspects, being increasingly used throughout the world. However, it remains the case that there has been little research as to how practitioners approach the task itself. The present study examined the topic through the lens of observing how effectively 30 real-life investigators in the UK undertook evaluation of their interviews, representing almost the entire investigative frontline workforce of a small law enforcement agency in this country. Using an established scale of measurement, both investigators’ and an expert’s ratings of the same sample of interviews were compared across a range of tasks and behaviours. It was found that in almost all the assessed behaviours, requiring of the investigators to provide a self-rating, their scores tended to significantly outstrip those applied to the sample by the expert. Reasons are explored for the investigators’ overstated assessments. Implications for practice are then discussed.N/

Investigative empathy: a strength scale of empathy based on European police perspectives

A growing body of research suggests that empathy may play a major role in establishing and maintaining rapport during police interviews. The benefits of rapport include not only increased cooperation from interviewees, but also gaining more accurate investigation-relevant information. However, despite a large amount of research on empathy which already exists, there still is, unfortunately, no universally agreed-upon definition and very little research on operationalizing and implementing appropriate forms of empathy, especially within the realm of investigative interviewing. Therefore, the present study was conducted with the goal of better understanding empathy from a police perspective and developing a way to assess and operationalize empathy for use in police interviews with suspects of high risk crimes (particularly with sex offences). The study considers police interviewers’ varying definitions of empathy in seven European countries, along with other factors. It analyzed police interviewers’ self-reports regarding their (i) training and methods employed during interviews, (ii) application of empathy in interviews, and (iii) definitions/understanding of empathy. Based on their answers, the various definitions of empathy were compiled and then placed on a new strength scale. It was found that officers in all participating countries varied within each country in their use of accusatory or information-gathering interview styles, suggesting that the methods employed were not systematically and uniformly taught and/or applied. The majority of participants in each country claimed to currently employ empathy in their interviews with suspects, yet they varied on their strength of the definitions provided. In no country was empathy considered useless in interviews and in no country was empathy defined as having aspects that may not be conducive to investigative interviewing.N/A

Developing a scale to measure the presence of possible prejudicial stereotyping in police interviews with suspects: The Minhas Investigative Interviewing Prejudicial Stereotyping Scale (MIIPSS)

If police interviewers hold negative feelings towards certain groups, this may affect how they interview them (either as victims, witnesses or suspects) in that they may not obtain reliable accounts, being the aim of such interviews. The Minhas Investigative Interviewing Prejudicial Stereotyping Scale (MIIPSS) has been developed to assess the level of any investigative interviewers' prejudicial stereotyping towards suspects. The current exploratory study involved semi-structured interviews with twenty people, who had previously been interviewed as suspects in England and also eight very experienced lawyers. Both their views were measured using the MIIPSS before being subjected to a Guttman analysis. Statistical analyses showed that MIIPSS satisfies the criteria for classification as a valid unidimensional and cumulative scale. Therefore, researchers could use MIIPSS as a tool to measure prejudicial stereotyping in investigative interviews. Interviewers could also use MIIPSS to monitor their own attitudes towards certain groups or individuals suspected of different types of crimes

Covid-19 and Child Criminal Exploitation in the UK: Implications of the Pandemic for County Lines

The file attached to this record is the author's final peer reviewed version. The Publisher's final version can be found by following the DOI link.open access articleIn March 2020, the UK was placed in lockdown following the spread of the Covid-19 virus. Just as legitimate workplaces made changes to enable their employees to work from home, the illicit drugs trade also made alternative arrangements, adapting its supply models to ensure continuity of operations. Based upon qualitative interviews with 46 practitioners, this paper assesses how front-line professionals have experienced and perceived the impact of Covid-19 on child criminal exploitation and County Lines drug supply in the UK. Throughout the paper, we highlight perceived adaptations to the County Lines supply model, the impact of lockdown restrictions on detection and law enforcement activities aimed at County Lines, and on efforts to safeguard children and young people from criminal exploitation. Our participants generally believed that the pandemic had induced shifts to County Lines that reflected an ongoing evolution of the drug supply model and shifts in understanding or attention because of the Covid-19 restrictions, rather than a complete reconstitution of the model itself. Practitioners perceived that Covid-19 has had, and continues to have, a significant impact on some young people’s vulnerability to exploitation, on the way in which police and frontline practitioners respond to County Lines and child criminal exploitation and on the way illegal drugs are being moved and sol

Child Criminal Exploitation: and County Lines drugs distribution: Understanding the impact of Covid-19. Report

In March 2020, restrictions on movement and social contact were imposed across the UK following the spread of the Covid-19 virus. Many legitimate businesses either closed their doors entirely or made changes to enable their employees to work from home. Media reports also began to circulate suggesting that the illicit drugs trade was also making alternative arrangements for the supply of illegal drugs

Relationship Between Sediment Morphology and PCB Contamination in the Acushnet River, New Bedford, Massachusetts

The New Bedford Harbor Superfund Site in southeastern Massachusetts includes the shallow northern reaches of the Acushnet River estuary through the commercial port of New Bedford and adjacent areas of Buzzards Bay. The sediments in the harbor are contaminated with high levels of PCBs and heavy metals from the industrial development surrounding the harbor. From the 1940s through the 1970s, electrical capacitor manufacturing plants discharged PCBs into New Bedford Harbor and its estuaries. In the mid-1970s EPA sampling identified PCBs in the river and harbor sediments greater than 100,000 mg/kg. In 1979, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health prohibited fishing and shell-fishing from the river and harbor due to the high levels of PCB contamination found in the harbor and in the seafood from the area. The site was included on the National Priorities List (NPL) in September 1983, as one of the hottest PCB sites in the United States. In September 1998, after years of study and public debate, EPA selected a cleanup remedy that involved the dredging and containment of approximately 170 acres of PCB contaminated sediment. The principal goals of the project were the reduction in health risks from consumption of PCB-contaminated local seafood and from exposure to contaminated shoreline sediments, and the improvement of water quality in the marine ecosystem. The prescribed PCB cleanup standards for the sediment ranged from 1 mg/kg shoreline areas immediately adjacent to residential properties, up to 50 mg/kg in sediment in remote salt marshes not readily accessible to the public. Removal of sediments to achieve the cleanup standards requires mechanical or hydraulic dredging of more than 800,000 cubic yards of material. Correlation of analytical data and sediment cores shows a relationship between the presence of PCB contamination and distribution of the organic layer (OL) in the river. The relationship exists because of the nature of the contamination and its affinity for organic material. Sediment cores have been collected to refine the modeled sediment removal maps and guide target depths for dredging

Paradoxical invitations: challenges in soliciting more information from child witnesses

This article analyses how police officers conducting interviews with children reporting their being victim of alleged sexual offenses ask witness if they would like to add to what has been said or whether they have any questions. Interviewing guidelines recommend that this be done during interview closure. The data set comprises twenty-seven videotaped interviews. Data are in British English. Using Conversation Analysis, we show that the understanding of interview closure as an appropriate place in which to request for the initiation of a new topic is paradoxical. We also outline practices for soliciting additional information throughout the course of the interview.University of Derb

Interviewing suspects: examining the association between skills, questioning, evidence disclosure, and interview outcomes

The interviewing of suspects is an important element in the investigation of crime. However, studies concerning actual performance of investigators when undertaking such interviews remain sparse. Nevertheless, in England and Wales, since the introduction of a prescribed framework over 20 years ago, field studies have generally shown an improvement in interviewing performance, notwithstanding ongoing concerns largely relating to the more demanding aspects (such as building/maintaining rapport, intermittent summarising and the logical development of topics). Using a sample of 70 real-life interviews, the present study examined questioning and various evidence disclosure strategies (which have also been found demanding), examining their relationships between interview skills and interview outcomes. It was found that when evidence was disclosed gradually (but revealed later), interviews were generally both more skilled and involved the gaining of comprehensive accounts, whereas when evidence was disclosed either early or very late, interviews were found to be both less skilled and less likely to involve this outcome. These findings contribute towards an increased research base for the prescribed framework