The cognitive interview: Its origins,empirical support,evaluation and practical implications

This paper provides a background to current research on the cognitive interview (CI), which is a set of cognitive retrieval techniques designed to facilitate memory search (for example, via reinstatement of contextual cues). One of the principal aims of this research is to identify and develop techniques which police investigators can themselves use. A series of studies were conducted at the University of California, Los Angeles, using police officers as interviewers and students, non-students and children as witnesses to realistic crimes. In all studies the CI elicited significantly more correct information with no apparent increase in errors or confabulations. The CI has been tested in a field study involving police officers in Florida. This paper will critically review this research, as well as more recent unpublished work including CI studies conducted in Germany and the UK. Some important modifications of the original CI procedure are described, and there is a theoretical discussion and explanation of the various components of the CI procedure. Finally, we will consider applications of the CI in clinical and organizational settings.     

Mnemonics Strategy Development: Improving Alphabetic Understanding In Turkish Students,At Risk for Failure in EFL Settings

The purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of integrated mnemonics on consonant letter naming and consonant sound production for three 4th grade Turkish students, at-risk for failure in an English-as-a-Foreign-Language (EFL) classroom. Mnemonic picture cards, where the target consonant letter was embedded as an integral part of the picture, were developed (e.g., the letter C as the clock, the letter D as the drum). Results showed that (a) all three students reached mastery on consonant letter naming, and (b) all three students showed marked improvement for consonant sound production, with one student reaching mastery. Letter-sound correspondence performance remained near instructional levels one week post-intervention. Generalization data showed students could produce some words that began and ended with consonant sounds, once consonant letter-sound correspondence was mastered.     

Proactive control of proactive interference using the method of loci

Proactive interferencebuilds up with exposure to multiple lists of similar items with a resulting reduction in recall. This study examined the effectiveness of using a proactive strategy of the method of loci to reduce proactive interference in a list recall paradigm of categorically similar words. While all participants reported using some form of strategy to recall list words, this study demonstrated that young adults were able to proactively use the method of loci after 25 min of instruction to reduce proactive interference as compared with other personal spontaneous strategies. The implications of this study are that top-down proactive strategies such as the method of loci can significantly reduce proactive interference, and that the use of image and sequence or location are especially useful in this regard.     

Facilitating particularization of repeated similar events with context‐specific cues

Ninety‐five dental care patients participated in a quasi‐experiment in which they were interviewed twice about dental visits they had made during the past ten years. Objective truth was established by analysing their dental records. The main purpose of the study was to investigate to what extent context‐specific cues could facilitate particularization (i.e., recollection of events and details) of repeated and similar events. A mixed design was employed and the effects of three types of cues were explored: two types of context‐specific cues vs. cues commonly used in police practise when interviewing plaintiffs. In line with our hypothesis, context‐specific cues tended to be more effective for recollection of individual events than the comparison cues. In addition, context‐specific cues generated more details than the comparison cues and the difference was marginally significant. Rehearsal of the memories by telling them to others was associated with an increased number of recollected events and details. The results are discussed from a legal psychology perspective with focus on recollection of repeated abuse.     

The utility of visuospatial mnemonics is dependent on visuospatial aptitudes

Classic studies in cognition have demonstrated that the use of appropriate memory mnemonics can reliably increase recall performance. However, is the facilitative effect of mnemonics consistent across all individuals? As some mnemonics explicitly contain a large visuospatial component, does normal variance in visuospatial aptitudes predict the effectiveness of such strategy usage? To explore this question, participants who varied in visuospatial ability were asked to recall several lists of words, and either did or did not use a visuospatial mnemonic. Results indicated that effective mnemonic usage was directly dependent on participants' visuospatial ability, and those lower in visuospatial aptitudes actually produced lower recall performance when asked to use such a mnemonic. Similarly, those lower in visuospatial aptitude also reported that mnemonic usage made the task significantly more difficult. These findings suggest that individual differences in relevant cognitive abilities can influence the effectiveness of memory strategies commonly used to enhance recall.     

Using Mnemonics to Increase Early Literacy Skills in Urban Kindergarten Students

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of an integrated mnemonics strategy on consonant letter naming and consonant sound production on three kindergarten students at-risk for academic failure. Flashcards were developed where the target capital letter was enhanced and imbedded as part of the known picture (e.g., the letter D as the doorknob on a door, the letter F as the flag and flagpole). The mnemonic strategy was assessed using a multiple baseline across students design. Results showed that all three students increased in both the number of consonants named and the number of consonant sounds produced. In addition, all three students maintained performance at the 1 and 3 week followup. Also, based on a pre- and post-assessment, 2 students demonstrated generalization to the ability to name words beginning with consonants letter-sound learned.     

关键字母法对于英文词汇记忆作用的实验研究

本研究以大学生为被试,以英文单词为实验材料,采用实验室实验法,探讨了关键字母法对于英文词汇记忆的作用。研究结果表明：无论从即时测验的成绩来看,还是从延迟测验的成绩来看,标准关键字母法都能够促进英文词汇的记忆。     

Facilitating memory‐based lie detection in immediate and delayed interviewing: The role of mnemonics

We experimentally investigated how different mnemonic techniques employed in an interview conducted immediately after an event affected truth tellers' and liars' responses when they were interviewed again after a 2‐week delay. We also compared how verbal accounts changed over time within truth tellers and liars, and how consistent both groups were. Participants (n = 143) were shown a mock intelligence operation video and instructed either to tell the truth or lie about its contents in two interviews, one of which was immediately after watching the video and the other after a 2‐week delay. In the immediate interview, they were asked to provide a free recall and then asked to provide further information via one of three mnemonics: context reinstatement, sketch, or event‐line. In the delayed interview, they were asked to provide only a free recall. Truth tellers reported more visual, spatial, temporal, and action details than did liars both immediately and after a delay. Truth tellers experienced more of a decline in reporting details after a delay than did liars, and this decline was affected by the mnemonic used. Truth tellers thus showed, more than liars, patterns of reporting indicative of genuine memory decay. Liars produced patterns of a “stability bias” instead. Truth tellers and liars were equally consistent between their immediate and delayed statements.     

The role of visual imagery in the enhanced cognitive interview: guided questioning techniques and individual differences

The cognitive interview utilises mnemonics and other techniques to facilitate obtaining information from victims and witnesses. Research has indicated superior recall to standard police interviews. However, there has been minimal research regarding the role of individual differences. One area that has generated spirited theoretical debate is imagery ability, as guided imagery questioning is an important part of the enhanced cognitive interview. Imagery is also arguably an integral part of several mnemonics employed in the technique. The present study investigated the role of individual differences in imagery ability, as well as the effect of explicit instructions to image, on recall performance. Participants completed the Vividness of Visual Imagery Questionnaire (VVIQ), witnessed a film of a simulated crime, and were interviewed using the cognitive interview or a structured interview. While recall in the cognitive interview was superior, VVIQ scores had little relationship with recall of information. Further, recall elicited by guided imagery differed only minimally from that obtained using standard questioning in the structured interview. These results suggested that the relaxation and rapport building common to questioning in both interview conditions may evoke spontaneous imagery that is comparable to explicit instructions to image, regardless of individuals' inherent imagery ability. Future directions are discussed, including research focused on individual differences and a practical emphasis on context reinstatement and social facilitative techniques. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.