Skill acquisition, transfer and application: a study of investigative interviewing training in the Queensland Police Service

Abstract

The ability of a police officer to elicit case-relevant information from a witness, victim or suspect of a crime is a fundamental component of policing capability. The police officer must be able to elicit accurate, complete and timely information from the individual in a manner that is effective, efficient and legally compliant. The officer must also be able to adapt their elicitation techniques to suit the circumstances of the encounter – whether it is a roadside field interview with a witness to a vehicle accident or a formal investigative interview of a homicide suspect. The interpersonal and communication skills required to effectively undertake the elicitation task, I propose, comprise both ‘hard’ procedural and ‘soft’ cognitive components. Neither hard nor soft interviewing skills are typically innate and the police officer must be formally trained in their uses. Once acquired in the training environment, the skills must then be transferred effectively and applied regularly in a workplace setting. At each junction in the acquisition-transfer-application pathway a variety of factors will either enable or inhibit the journey and, ultimately, impact on the effectiveness of the investigative interview that is conducted in the workplace. Using the Queensland Police Service (QPS) as a case study, my research expands upon existing knowledge associated with the skill acquisition-transfer-application pathway. The research also addresses research gaps associated with training delivery and workplace utilisation of both hard and soft investigative interviewing skills. My findings suggest that there is an imbalance of emphasis on hard skills in investigative interviewing training with soft skills relegated to a cursory status. My findings also indicate that QPS Level 1 (Foundation) investigative interviewing training is not satisfying the skill demands of the most common interviewing scenarios for uniformed officers – the Field Interview. My findings suggest that the acquisition-transfer-application pathway for QPS Level 2 (Complex Investigations) is, with some adjustments, more likely to lead to effective investigative interviews. My research has implications for both the design and delivery of investigative interviewing training and the future development and management of this key component of policing capability.