The Cognitive Interview

The Cognitive Interview

1. Context reinstatement

   • Trying to mentally recreate an image of the situation, including details of the environment, such as the weather conditions, and the individual’s emotional state including their feelings at the time of the incident.

2. Recall from a changed perspective

   • Trying to mentally recreate the situation from different points of view e.g. describing what another witness present at the scene would have seen

3. Recall in reverse order

   • The witness is asked to describe the scene in a different chronological order e.g. from the end to the beginning.
     • Disrupts schemas

4. Report everything

   • The interviewer encourages the witness to report all details about the event, even though these details may seem unimportant.

5. The Enhanced Cognitive Interview

   • Encourage the witness to relax and speak slowly.
   • Adapt questions to suit the understanding of individual witnesses.
   • Offer comments to help clarify witness statements.