Building rapport with victims

There is little debate that rapport-building is an effective way to improve the quality of an interview. It can also increase the amount of information recalled by the victim. Witness memories are fragile, and unique personal recollections of an event can require intense concentration and cognitive effort to process (Nahouli et al, 2021). One of the key benefits of rapport-building is that it relieves some of the social demands of the interview and can improve cognitive processes, such as episodic memory (i.e., memory of everyday events). Comfortable witnesses will be more cooperative and better able to recall events, thereby increasing the accuracy of the interview (Nahouli et al., 2021).

There are many frameworks for rapport-building, including the Tickle-Degnen and Rosenthal model, which can be used to develop and maintain rapport during police interviews. This model focuses on three essential ingredients: (1) mutual attention, (2) positivity, and (3) coordination. Individuals who have a high degree of rapport develop cohesiveness through expressions of mutual attention and involvement with each other–there is a mutual interest in each other’s words or stories. Mutual attentiveness creates the cohesive interaction between two individuals (Tickle-Degnen & Rosenthal, 1990). To develop mutual attention, officers can use back-channel responses, such as “Mmm,” acknowledgements like “Okay,” paraphrasing the interviewee (e.g., repeating back what the victim said), or identifying emotions by saying something like “I see that you are upset” (Collins & Carthy, 2018).

Positivity is the second component, where individuals involved in the interaction feel mutual friendliness and caring (Tickle-Degnen & Rosenthal, 1990). To develop positivity, officers can use empathy (e.g., “I can understand why you might feel angry”). Above all, officers should be polite and friendly. They should use the victim’s name and provide reassurance when needed. If the situation calls for it, humour may also be helpful to create positivity (Collins & Carthy, 2018).

The third component, coordination, seeks harmony with the victim, an equilibrium within the relationship, regularity, and predictability (Tickle-Degnen & Rosenthal, 1990). Agreement is important for this stage. Sentences like “Yes, exactly” create coordination. Credibility is also essential to creating coordination. For example, officers can explain they have 10 years of investigative experience and five in human trafficking. It is also important to explain procedures and processes in order to develop coordination. Should the victim wish to pursue charges against their exploiter,Footnote 4 it is important to explain the process in simple detail. For example, “You will be audio and video recorded… my partner will be writing notes while I speak… you can stop the interview at any time.” Lastly, familiarization with the interview room is important. An officer can describe the cameras in the room, for example, where they point, and where the washroom is.