Interviewing Suspects of Fraud: An In-Depth Analysis of Interviewing Skills

Abstract

Whereas much of the limited research concerning the actual investigative interviewing of suspects has involved police interviews, almost no research has involved other agencies who regularly undertake criminal investigations (for example, those various government agencies that conduct investigations regarding benefit fraud). This study examined a sample of 142 of the more demanding interviews, (both from audiotapes and transcripts of actual interviews with suspects) and it revealed that, while investigators generally displayed ethical interviewing standards and tended to use open questioning techniques, few interviews were skilled. Shortcomings were particularly found in terms of rapport development, summarizing, flexibility, and how investigators brought interviews to closure. Given this frequency of ineffective interviewing, it is recommended that further training of interviewers is required and that additional research is required into the reasons for the mediocre performance.