Impression management strategies of deceivers and honest reporters in an investigative interview

Amber Hines

Description

Abstract
Understanding the subjective experience of respondents attempting to convince an investigator will enhance our theoretical knowledge of deception and improve assessment techniques. Discrepancies between respondents’ understanding and actual credibility criteria are especially important. Sixty-six participants engaged in a small crime, and were interviewed following a week’s preparation. All were provided incentive for convincing the interviewer of the veracity of their statement. Thirty-two were honestly reporting the theft, and thirty-four were responding to avoid being found guilty. After a Reality Interview (a derivative of the Cognitive Interview), participants were asked to describe what was important in convincing the interviewer through open-ended and Likert-type questions. These strategies of impression management are presented here. The basic task of convincing appeared similar for both groups, with participants focused on providing clear and careful stories without contradictions rather than attempting to provide vivid and spontaneously-constructed statements. Deceivers attached more importance to: 1) preparing in advance, 2) monitoring and controlling information, and 3) maintaining eye contact. Honest respondents were more concerned with providing correct peripheral detail. Importantly, both groups were reporting much more similarity than difference, and the strategies described are not likely to succeed against verbal content analysis.
Resumen
La comprensión de la experiencia subjetiva de los que intentan convencer a un investigador mejorará el conocimiento teórico del engaño y robustecerá las técnicas de evaluación. Las discrepancias de los informes de los sujetos y los criterios de credibilidad reales son especialmente relevantes. Setenta y dos participantes, a los que se les pidió que cometieran un pequeño delito simulado, fueron entrevistados aproximadamente una semana después de éste. Todos fueron motivados con incentivos para que convencieran al entrevistador de la veracidad de su declaración. A treinta y dos se les solicitó que informaran con honestidad del robo, y a treinta y cuatro que respondieran de modo que no fueran considerados culpables. Después de una Entrevista de Realidad (una derivación de la Entrevista Cognitiva), se le pidió a los participantes que describieran en un formato de respuesta tipo Likert y en una entrevista abierta cuáles eran las claves para convencer al entrevistador. Las estrategias de gestión de la impresión resultaron similares para ambos grupos. Los participantes se centraron en la prestación de historias claras y cuidadosas, y sin contradicciones, en lugar de tratar de proporcionar declaraciones construidas espontáneamente y con viveza. Los mentirosos conferían más importancia a: 1) la preparación anticipada, 2) el seguimiento y control de la información, y 3) el mantenimiento del contacto visual. Los honestos mostraban más interés en aportar más información periférica correcta. Es importante destacar que ambos grupos mostraron más similitudes que diferencias y que sus estrategias es probable que no resulten eficaces frente al análisis de contenido verbal.

Sujets

• Déception
• Interrogation
• Testimony
• Linguistics
• Careo
• Comunicación verbal

Informations

• Publié par: erevistas
• Publié le: 01 janvier 2010
• Nombre de lectures: 24
• Langue: English

Extrait

ISSN: 1889-1861 The European Journal of Psychology Applied to Legal Context, 2010, 2(1)
www.usc.es/sepjf


THE EUROPEAN JOURNAL
OF
PSYCHOLOGY APPLIED
TO
LEGAL CONTEXT








Volume 2, Number 1, January 2010










The official Journal of the
SOCIEDAD ESPAÑOLA DE PSICOLOGÍA JURÍDICA Y FORENSE
Website: http://www.usc.es/sepjf

ISSN 1889-1861 © The European Journal of Psychology Applied to Legal Context
Editor

Ramón Arce, University of Santiago de Compostela (Spain).

Associate Editors

Gualberto Buela-Casal, University of Granada (Spain).
Francisca Fariña, University of Vigo (Spain).

Editorial Board

Rui Abrunhosa, University of O Miño (Portugal).
Ray Bull, University of Leicester (UK).
Thomas Bliesener, University of Kiel (Germany).
Fernando Chacón, Complutense University of Madrid (Spain).
Ángel Egido, University of Angers (France).
Antonio Godino, University of Lecce (Italy).
Günter Köhnken, University of Kiel (Germany).
Friedrich Lösel, University of Cambridge (UK).
María Ángeles Luengo, University of Santiago de Compostela (Spain).
Eduardo Osuna, University of Murcia (Spain).
Ronald Roesch, Simon Fraser University (Canada).
Francisco Santolaya, President of the Spanish Psychological Association (Spain).
Juan Carlos Sierra, University of Granada (Spain).
Jorge Sobral, University of Santiago de Compostela (Spain).
Max Steller, Free University of Berlin, (Germany).
Francisco Tortosa, University of Valencia (Spain).




Official Journal of the Sociedad Española de Psicología Jurídica y Forense
(www.usc.es/sepjf)
Published By: SEPJF.
Volume 2, Number, 1.
Order Form: see www.usc.es/sepjf
Frequency: 2 issues per year.
ISSN: 1889-1861.

The European Journal of Psychology Applied to Legal Context, 2010, 2(1)
www.usc.es/sepjf


CONTENTS
Articles
Editorial 1

Treatment of drug addiction and psychopathology: A field study
Manuel Isorna, Luis Fernández-Ríos, and Antonio Souto 3

Prediction of cannabis and cocaine use in adolescence using decision
trees and logistic regression
Elena Gervilla and Alfonso Palmer 19

Adolescent witnesses in cases of teen dating violence:
An analysis of peer responses
Josefa Ruiz, Francisca Expósito, and Helena Bonache 37

New advances in the study of the confidence-accuracy relationship
in the memory for events
Karlos Luna and Beatriz Martín-Luengo 55

Impression management strategies of deceivers and honest
reporters in an investigative interview
Amber Hines, Kevin Colwell, Cheryl Hiscock-Anisman,
Erika Garrett, Ryan Ansarra and Larissa Montalvo 73


ISSN 1889-1861 © The European Journal of Psychology Applied to Legal Context
The European Journal of Psychology Applied to Legal Context, 2010, 2(1): 73-90
www.usc.es/sepjf

IMPRESSION MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES OF DECEIVERS
AND HONEST REPORTERS IN AN INVESTIGATIVE
INTERVIEW

Amber Hines*, Kevin Colwell*, Cheryl Hiscock-Anisman**, Erika Garrett*, Ryan
Ansarra*, and Larissa Montalvo*

* Southern Connecticut State University, New Haven, Connecticut (USA)
** National University, La Jolla, La Jolla, California (USA)

(Received 31 March 2009; revised 24 October 2009; accepted 2 November 2009)


Resumen Abstract
La comprensión de la experiencia subjetiva Understanding the subjective experience of
de los que intentan convencer a un investigador respondents attempting to convince an investigator
mejorará el conocimiento teórico del engaño y will enhance our theoretical knowledge of deception
robustecerá las técnicas de evaluación. Las and improve assessment techniques. Discrepancies
discrepancias de los informes de los sujetos y los between respondents’ understanding and actual
criterios de credibilidad reales son especialmente credibility criteria are especially important. Sixty-six
relevantes. Setenta y dos participantes, a los que se participants engaged in a small crime, and were
les pidió que cometieran un pequeño delito simulado, interviewed following a week’s preparation. All were
fueron entrevistados aproximadamente una semana provided incentive for convincing the interviewer of
después de éste. Todos fueron motivados con the veracity of their statement. Thirty-two were
incentivos para que convencieran al entrevistador de honestly reporting the theft, and thirty-four were
la veracidad de su declaración. A treinta y dos se les responding to avoid being found guilty. After a
solicitó que informaran con honestidad del robo, y a Reality Interview (a derivative of the Cognitive
treinta y cuatro que respondieran de modo que no Interview), participants were asked to describe what
fueran considerados culpables. Después de una was important in convincing the interviewer through
Entrevista de Realidad (una derivación de la open-ended and Likert-type questions. These
Entrevista Cognitiva), se le pidió a los participantes strategies of impression management are presented
que describieran en un formato de respuesta tipo here. The basic task of convincing appeared similar
Likert y en una entrevista abierta cuáles eran las for both groups, with participants focused on
claves para convencer al entrevistador. Las providing clear and careful stories without
estrategias de gestión de la impresión resultaron contradictions rather than attempting to provide vivid
similares para ambos grupos. Los participantes se and spontaneously-constructed statements. Deceivers
centraron en la prestación de historias claras y attached more importance to: 1) preparing in
cuidadosas, y sin contradicciones, en lugar de tratar advance, 2) monitoring and controlling information,
de proporcionar declaraciones construidas and 3) maintaining eye contact. Honest respondents
espontáneamente y con viveza. Los mentirosos were more concerned with providing correct
conferían más importancia a: 1) la preparación peripheral detail. Importantly, both groups were
anticipada, 2) el seguimiento y control de la reporting much more similarity than difference, and
información, y 3) el mantenimiento del contacto the strategies described are not likely to succeed
visual. Los honestos mostraban más interés en aportar against verbal content analysis.
más información periférica correcta. Es importante
destacar que ambos grupos mostraron más similitudes Keywords: deception, interrogation, testimony,
que diferencias y que sus estrategias es probable que verbal communication, credibility.
no resulten eficaces frente al análisis de contenido
verbal.

Palabras clave: mentira, interrogatorio, testimonio,
comunicación verbal, credibilidad.


_________________________________________________________________
Correspondence: Kevin Colwell, Ph.D., Department of Psychology, Southern Connecticut State
University, 501 Crescent St, New Haven, CT 06515, USA. E-mail: [e-mail]



ISSN 1889-1861 © The European Journal of Psychology Applied to Legal Context 74 A. Hines et al.

Introduction

Significant research attention has been given to objective indicators of deception
within investigative contexts. In contrast, less attention has been given to the ways in
which people attempt to convince interviewers and to appear credible. By investigating
such impression management, we can understand better the intentions and allocation of
effort of respondents as they attempt to convince investigators. Of special interest are
the discrepancies between perceived and actual indicators of deception, as well as the
common assumptions shared by honest and deceptive respondents concerning how to
convince an interviewer. This knowledge will allow investigators to refine existing
interviewing and detection strategies by focusing attention on indicators that deceivers
do not manipulate directly or manipulate erroneously as a result of impression
management efforts.

Objective indicators of deception

Memory and credibility
The longest standing and most researched memory-based system of credibility
assessment is Criteria-Based Content Analysis (CBCA; see Vrij & Mann, 2006, and
Colwell, Hiscock-Anisman, Memon, Rachel, & Colwell, 2007, for reviews). Two
CBCA criteria, Unstructured Production (or Spontaneous Reproduction) and Quantity
of Details (or Sufficient Detail) have been promising in differentiating honest from
deceptive statements. These criteria together posit that statements derived from genuine
memory differ in amount and distribution of detail content. In short, genuine memories
for external events are more detailed and follow a less rigid, more spontaneous structure
than memories derived from imagination or fabrication.
Another line of research th