Choosing an Interview or Interrogation Setting

Most criminal information comes from people. Therefore, it is important for an investigator to be proficiently knowledgeable during the interrogation and interviewing. A successful interview requires strategic planning, relevant questioning, and objectivity. Inadequate preparation will result in failure to gather enough information to address issues in questions. To start with, an interview should be scheduled in advance to create enough time for initiation and completion. An effective interviewer is one who is active to listen and active to observe. The interviewer should develop good rapport by conducting the interview with objectivity, fairness, and professionalism. The interviewer should be non-threatening. Where exhibits are used, the documents should be well arranged prior to the interviews.

Depending on the situation, there is a number of factors that should be considered prior to the interview or interrogation. First, there should be coordination between the human resources, security, and information technology departments. Additionally, the following considerations should be put in place when setting up an interview setting; first, there should be enough privacy. Very few people as possible should access the interrogation room. People are known to open up more in private. The room should be in a place where external sources cannot interfere or break the chain of thought, i.e., the setting should be soundproof. The room should not be very spacious. Research sources indicate that the closeness of the interrogators to the suspect aids in narration. Distraction elements such as tape player, radio, and pictures should be removed from the settings because they interfere with the suspect’s attention.

Furthermore, the settings should be well lit to enable the interrogator to observe the interviewee’s psychological responses such as increasing heartbeats, changes in skin tone, etc. Electronic devices such as telephones should be avoided. The police atmosphere should also be avoided. This implies that things like guns, cuffs, and uniformed police make the interviewee withhold their confessions. The chairs of the interrogator should be equipped with wheels and higher than the suspect’s chair. This enables elevating the interrogator physically and psychologically.