Directive leading questions and preparation technique effects on witness accuracy

The use of leading questions during cross-examination can undermine the accuracy and completeness of evidence presented in court. Further, increasing numbers of general witnesses are arriving in court unprepared for the experience. In this study, 60 mock witnesses from England and Wales were allocated to one of three preparation conditions; a) those who received no familiarisation with the cross-examination process, b) those who received a guidance booklet on cross-examination procedures, and c) those who underwent an alternative rapport-building protocol. The participants observed a hit-and-run scenario video clip before being cross-examined with either a) non-directive leading questions or b) directive leading questions. The results showed that directive leading questioning styles were most detrimental to witness accuracy. Neither familiarisation with the types of questions typically employed during cross-examination nor the rapport-building protocol were found to be effective as a preparation strategy to increase accurate responses compared against a control group. Consideration of the impact of directive leading question styles on all witnesses in court seems necessary

Rethinking leading: the directive, non-directive divide

There is a dearth of legal and psychological consideration of leading questions during the trial process. This article argues the current approach to leading questions does not assist or promote the accuracy of witness evidence. Witness here is taken to mean anyone giving oral testimony, whether for the prosecution, defence or indeed the defendant him or herself. We advance a revised definition of leading, differentiating between directive and non-directive questions. Directive questioning is the primary mischief to eliciting accurate witness testimony; we propose here its reform. Nondirective leading is of less concern and should be the leading form open to use in cross-examination

The Influence of Delay and Item Difficulty in Criminal Justice Systems on Eyewitness Confidence and Accuracy

There is international concern about the negative effects of delays in Criminal Justice Systems. Problems include the deleterious effects that delay can have on witnesses' memory accuracy and witnesses' ability to calibrate their memories accurately. Little empirical work has been conducted on these issues combined with item difficulty and the relationship between accuracy and confidence. This paper investigates these issues. 21 witnesses were interviewed about an observed crime and required to answer lawyerly questions used in cross-examination relating to target items classified as 'easy', 'moderate' and 'difficult', in terms of memorability. Participants were interviewed again, 6 months later. A 6 month delay significantly reduced memory accuracy for all levels of question difficulty. Within-subjects C-A relationships seemed to be relatively unaffected by delay; i.e. they tended to be positive for easy and moderate items, and negative for difficult items. Between-subjects C-A relationships were also positive for both easy and moderate items, but improved after 6 months; whereas C-A relationships for the difficult items remained negative and statistically insignificant following the 6 month delay. Delay can have a profound negative effect on witness accuracy that is not likely to be compensated for by improvements in C-A calibration

The impact of cyberstalking: the lived experience - a thematic analysis.

Cyberstalking (CS) can have major psychosocial impacts on individuals. Victims report a number of serious consequences of victimization such as increased suicidal ideation, fear, anger, depression, and post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptomology. Research is largely limited to quantitative outcome research. This study examines the diversity of experiences reported by people who define themselves as having been cyberstalked. Thematic analysis was used to explore 100 CS victim narratives, gathered by means of an online survey questionnaire designed to capture structured text responses. Five emergent themes were evident in the data: control and intimidation; determined offender; development of harassment; negative consequences; and lack of support. Findings identify similarities and differences to traditional stalking, along with the necessity of support for victims and illustration of the negative impacts this form of harassment produces

Measuring the meta and cognitive abilities of air defence operators

Introduction: This study aimed to understand more fully some factors that influence decision confidence and accuracy related to air defence. To investigate the metacognitive abilities of air defence operators a Within-Subjects Confidence-Accuracy (W-S C-A) measure was used. Specifically, therefore, this study investigated the impact of Decision Criticality (DC) and Task Stress (TS) on decision making, measures of confidence, accuracy, and the W-S C-A relation. Personality constructs, workload and situation awareness were also included. Method: Participants were allocated to either a high, moderate or low task stress condition. Each participant then took part in a computer generated air defence scenario where they were required to make various decisions and provide a confidence rating for each of those decisions. Confidence, accuracy and W-S C-A were calculated. Results & Discussion: DC impacted both on decision confidence and accuracy, with low DC increasing confidence in decisions and high DC increasing accuracy in decisions

Young Adult Perceptions of Internet Communications and the Grooming Concept

Research of young people shows a lack of understanding of the term grooming in online communications and that internet risks are taken because internet literacy is poor for this group. However, limited research has investigated the perceptions of young adults in this context. The aim of this study was to understand young adults’ perceptions of risk, their internet behaviors, and understanding of the grooming concept. Furthermore, to understand the types of risk behaviors young people engage in online, whether they perceive these behaviors as risky, and what implications this has for vulnerability to negative experiences. An examination of internet communication perceptions and the grooming concept focused on 10 young males and females aged between 18 and 23 years. Semi-structured interviews were conducted at open access youth organizations in the North West of England, UK, and the duration of each interview was approximately 30 min. The data were transcribed and analyzed using thematic analysis. Emergent themes were (a) grooming as a concept, (b) virtual lives, and (c) perception of risk. The findings concur there is limited understanding of the term grooming but that explanations may not be simply confined to literacy. Risks being taken online were not always perceived as risky. Recommendations include the need for a more nuanced definition of the term grooming and that more information is available to children and caregivers. Further work should focus on younger participants’ perceptions of grooming to address wider issues, together with a focus on risk taking behaviors among other vulnerable groups

Unmanned aerial systems (UAS) operators’ accuracy and confidence of decisions:Professional pilots or video game players?

Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) operations have outpaced current training regimes resulting in a shortage of qualified UAS pilots. Three potential UAS operator groups were explored for suitability (i.e. video game players [VGP]; private pilots; professional pilots) and examined to assess levels of accuracy, confidence and confidence-accuracy judgements (W-S C-A) during a simulated civilian cargo flight. Sixty participants made 21 decision tasks, which varied across three levels of danger/risk. Scales of Tolerance of Ambiguity, Decision Style and NEO-PIR were also completed. Professional pilots and VGPs exhibited the highest level of decision confidence, with VGPs maintaining a constant and positive W-S C-A relationship across decision danger/risk. As decision danger/risk increased, confidence, accuracy and W-S C-A decreased. Decision danger also had a role to play in the confidence expressed when choosing to intervene or rely on automation. Neuroticism was negatively related, and conscientiousness positively related, to confidence. Intolerance of ambiguity was negatively related to W-S C-A. All groups showed higher levels of decision confidence in decisions controlled by the UAS in comparison to decisions where the operator manually intervened. VGPs display less overconfidence in decision judgements. Findings support the idea that VGPs could be considered a resource in UAS operation

Rethinking leading: the directive, non-directive divide

There is a dearth of legal and psychological consideration of leading questions during the trial process. This article argues the current approach to leading questions does not assist or promote the accuracy of witness evidence. Witness here is taken to mean anyone giving oral testimony, whether for the prosecution, defence or indeed the defendant him or herself. We advance a revised definition of leading, differentiating between directive and non-directive questions. Directive questioning is the primary mischief to eliciting accurate witness testimony; we propose here its reform. Nondirective leading is of less concern and should be the leading form open to use in cross-examination

The influence of delay and item difficulty on eyewitness confidence and accuracy

There is international concern about the negative effects of delays in Criminal Justice Systems. Problems include the deleterious effects that delay can have on witnesses’ memory accuracy and witnesses’ ability to calibrate their memories accurately. Little empirical work has been conducted on these issues combined with item difficulty and the relationship between accuracy and confidence. This paper investigates these issues. 21 witnesses were interviewed about an observed crime and required to answer lawyerly questions used in cross-examination relating to target items classified as ‘easy’, ‘moderate’ and ‘difficult’, in terms of memorability. Participants were interviewed again, 6 months later. A 6 month delay significantly reduced memory accuracy for all levels of question difficulty. Within-subjects C-A relationships seemed to be relatively unaffected by delay; i.e. they tended to be positive for easy and moderate items, and negative for difficult items. Between-subjects C-A relationships were also positive for both easy and moderate items, but improved after 6 months; whereas C-A relationships for the difficult items remained negative and statistically insignificant following the 6 month delay. Delay can have a profound negative effect on witness accuracy that is not likely to be compensated for by improvements in C-A calibration

Specialist police interviewer perceptions of the enhanced cognitive interview: usefulness, confidence and witness reliability

Cognitive Interviews (CI) are recognised as best practise for investigative interviews of witnesses across relevant jurisdictions worldwide; though police officers’ perceptions of the usefulness of some ECI components sit awkwardly with empirical findings. This paper examines 33 Enhanced Cognitive Interview (ECI) specialist trained police officers’ views which showed ‘build rapport’ and ‘report everything’ perceived as most useful. Furthermore, the study identified longer time-served officers as more confident in conducting the ECI than shorter service officers. Adult witnesses were perceived as most reliable with the ECI most useful for these witnesses while children <6 least reliable and thus less likely to benefit. The findings are discussed in relation to investigative interview training, investigative practise and research. The need for a simplified protocol for officers who are working in complex operational contexts is recognised