Abstract
Tactics recommended for rapport-building consist of verbal (e.g., finding common ground or shared experiences) and non-verbal (e.g., affirmations, displaying empathy) behaviours. Most of the research on rapport, however, has examined it in in-person contexts, where both verbal and non-verbal behaviours are present. In this study, we were interested in the effectiveness of rapport-building when conducting online witness interviews via chat, which de-emphasises the use non-verbal rapport behaviours, compared to traditional in-person interviews. Participants (N = 131) experienced a virtual reality (VR) scenario depicting a mock crime and were interviewed either in person or online via the chat function in Skype. Participants perceived rapport more positively when interviewed in person for three measures: attentiveness, trust and respect and expertise. Two other measures, cultural similarity and connected flow, were not perceived differently across interview medium. Participants interviewed online via chat disclosed similar amounts of crime-related information and were just as accurate as participants interviewed in person. We found that in-person interviews yielded better rapport ratings than interviews via chat but were equally productive in terms of the quality of information obtained, as measured by crime-related details and accuracy. If witnesses are to be interviewed via chat, investigators must carefully consider how to compensate for the lack of those non-verbal rapport tactics that influence witnesses' perceptions of attentiveness, trust/respect and investigator's expertise.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 162-178 |
Number of pages | 17 |
Journal | Journal of Investigative Psychology and Offender Profiling |
Volume | 20 |
Issue number | 2 |
Early online date | 1 Jan 2023 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - Jun 2023 |
Keywords
- chat interview
- information disclosure
- investigative interviewing
- online rapport
- rapport-building
- witness interview
- COMPUTER-MEDIATED COMMUNICATION
- INVESTIGATIVE INTERVIEWS
- MAINTAINING RAPPORT
- ONLINE
- INFORMATION
- PERCEPTIONS
- TECHNOLOGY
- INTERNET
- VICTIMS
- IMPACT