NCJ Number
188590
Journal
White Paper Volume: 15 Issue: 2 Dated: March/April 2001 Pages: 27-29
Date Published
2001
Length
3 pages
Annotation
This article describes the kinesic interview techniques, which aims to produce stress in an interview so as to determine whether or not the subject is telling the truth.
Abstract
The kinesic interview technique is used to attempt to read the interview subject's reaction to stress. There are several types of questions that can be used in the kinesic interview to provide clues to the guilt or innocence of the interview subject. One type of question is the "punishment" question. The interviewer will casually discuss the punishment of the crime's perpetrator with the subject, asking, for example, "What do you think should happen to the criminal?" The guilty person is more likely than the innocent person to recommend a more sympathetic approach to the criminal. Another type of question is the "physical evidence" question, in which the interviewer will suggest that there is a piece of evidence that might link the interviewee to a crime. The interviewer might ask, "Is there any reason that your fingerprints might have been found near the crime scene?" The guilty person will often attempt to cover for this evidence with another lie. A third type of question is the "crime existence" question, which might be, "Do you think that this crime was even committed?" The guilty person is likely to say, "no." In the context of receiving answers to the aforementioned types of questions, the interviewer should carefully observe and subsequently analyze the interviewee's self-initiated verbal statements, prompted verbal responses, and nonverbal behavior/body language so as to assess the truthfulness of the interviewee's statements about the crime.