Interviewing victims and witnesses of crime.

Communication in investigative settings with vulnerable victims and wit- nesses (and suspected offenders) is a vitally important area of practice and research. This chapter outlines a significant paradigm-shift in interviewing practices relating to victims and witnesses, highlighting that such interviewing requires enhanced sensitivity and advanced training. There is strong, international consensus on which interviewing skills are currently deemed to be the most effective and appear to yield the most accurate accounts, some of which are presented and discussed in this chapter. Alt- hough these skills can be learned, it has been continually found across scientific research that, for (as yet) unknown reasons, many interviewers do not appear to use these skills reliably during interviews. We discuss elements of current interview methods currently available internationally and provide an overall consensus that the use of structured interview protocols appears to be the most effective. Several aspects of our approach to investigative interviewing that are now considered conventional wisdom, were once contested, challenged and debated. In this chapter we have examined and presented some of the debate surrounding the complex nature of investigative interviewing of victims and witnesses, specifically those who are deemed vulnerable, and the key aspects with which all interviewers should be familiar.