Cognitive Interview & Admissions Flashcards

Which cognitive interview technique asks the subject to mentally reinstate the environmental and personal context of an event before recalling it?

Answer: Mental reinstatement of context

Mental reinstatement of context is a core CI technique where the subject mentally recreates the physical and psychological setting of the event to enhance memory retrieval.

A fraud examiner conducting an admission-seeking interview should place the subject in which seating arrangement relative to the interviewer?

Answer: At a 45-degree angle to reduce confrontational tension

A 45-degree seating angle reduces the confrontational face-to-face dynamic and encourages a more open conversational flow during admission-seeking interviews.

In the Reid Technique's Behavior Analysis Interview (BAI), which response to the question 'Do you know who stole the money?' is most consistent with deception?

Answer: 'Why would I steal from my own company?'

Answering a direct question with a counter-question ('Why would I?') is a classic deflection behavior associated with deceptive subjects avoiding a direct denial.

The PEACE model of interviewing, developed in the UK, differs from the Reid Technique primarily because PEACE:

Answer: Is non-coercive and information-gathering focused

PEACE (Preparation, Engage, Account, Closure, Evaluate) is a non-accusatory, information-gathering model that avoids the psychological pressure tactics used in Reid.

During a cognitive interview, the instruction to 'report everything' is intended to:

Answer: Prevent the witness from filtering out seemingly trivial details

'Report everything' instructs subjects not to self-censor minor details, since peripheral information can trigger additional memories or corroborate other evidence.

Which type of question should a fraud examiner avoid during the information-gathering phase of a cognitive interview?

Answer: Leading questions

Leading questions suggest a desired answer and can contaminate a subject's memory or testimony, undermining the integrity of the cognitive interview.

An admission in a fraud investigation is most legally useful when it is:

Answer: Voluntary, corroborated, and documented contemporaneously

Admissions carry the most evidentiary weight when they are freely given, supported by independent evidence, and recorded immediately after they occur.