6. The Investigator's Toolkit

About this Lecture

Lecture

In this lecture, we think about an investigators toolkit for the field of lie detection research, focusing in particular on: (i) the lack of cultural diversity in lie detection research; (ii) content based criteria analysis (CBCA) and the Undeutsch hypothesis; (iii) cognitive and motivational factors which make up the nineteen cues within CBCA; (iv) the use of model statements to help interviewees be more informative; (v) Dr Porter’s own research on model statements as a useful lie detection technique; (vi) the strategic use of evidence as an interview technique to help with lie detection; (vii) the verifiability approach, which involves looking for ‘checkable’ information and suggests that liars are unable to provide this when compared to truth tellers; (viii) the asymmetric information management (AIM) technique, which involves informing the participant of the unreliability of lie detection techniques and promoting them to be more detailed in their response; (ix) the contrasting responses to the information given in the AIM technique between liars and truth tellers, with truth tellers giving more information to help with lie detection and liars giving less, to try to not give themselves away.

Course

In this course, Dr Cody Porter (University of the West of England) explores investigative interviewing and lie detection. In the first lecture, we think about methods of investigative interviewing, including the two main types and four dimensions of each. In the second lecture, we think about historical approaches to lie detection, from ancient practices to the modern polygraph. In the third lecture, we think about how body language can be used to detect deception. Next, we think about the cognitive approach to lie detection. In the fifth lecture, we think about how best to approach detecting deception. In the sixth and final lecture, we review the ‘investigator’s toolkit’ of strategies to detect deception.

Lecturer

Dr Cody Porter is a senior lecturer in social psychology in the department of Health and Social Sciences at the University of the West of England. Dr Porter’s research interests are in information elicitation, lie detection and offending behaviour. Some of Dr Porter’s recent publications include ‘Implementing converged security risk management: Drivers, barriers, and facilitators’ (in press) and ‘Applying the asymmetric information management technique to insurance claims’ (2022).