I get this question in almost every class: what's with all the goats? It started as a way to say thank you — cartoon GOAT stickers and a handwritten note for detectives who did great work. It ended up teaching me something about science-based interviewing. One good opening question once got 14 minutes of lies from a man now serving 30 years for murder. Every one of those lies was information. Statements are evidence. Here's why that changes how you interview — and how you lea

Most active listening training teaches performance, not the real skill. After years in hostage negotiation and homicide investigations, I can tell you — nobody in those rooms cared whether I was nodding. What actually determines whether someone talks or shuts down has nothing to do with what any listening module ever taught. Here's what real active listening costs, why dismissing it as a soft skill is a dangerous mistake, and what it actually looks like when the stakes are hi

What investigators often call luck is usually better information gathering. Science-based interviewing helps create that edge through better questions, stronger rapport, and Strategic Use of Evidence (SUE). Statement evidence gives context to every case, helps locate more witnesses and evidence, and moves investigators closer to the truth. Good interviews do more than confirm theories. They build a fuller picture of events and help define the case.

Science-Based Interviewing focuses on gathering accurate, unbiased information—but some common questions quietly sabotage that goal. Self-handicapping questions like “Were you a witness?” embed assumptions that cause people to self-exclude, cutting off valuable information before it emerges. This article explains how these questions harm investigations, why they persist, and how open-ended, information-generating prompts protect investigative integrity.

Science-Based Interviewing is changing how interviews and interrogations are done—shifting from control and pressure to listening, curiosity, and strategy. From using silence as a tool to building rapport that actually produces better case data, this post shares five powerful lessons from decades in the field. If you care about getting better information, stronger cases, and more reliable interviews, start here.

Workplace investigation interviews built on behavioral lie detection create legal liability. Learn why junk science fails at depositions, why step-by-step systems break down, and what defensible investigations actually require.

Science-Based Interviewing (SBI) must come before Artificial Intelligence (AI) in policing. Pseudoscientific lie detection and accusatory tactics feed garbage into investigations, and AI will only amplify those errors. Evidence-based SBI—rapport, active listening, open-ended questions—produces reliable, information-rich statements. That’s the data AI can actually use to strengthen cases and build trust in the information age of policing.

Interviewing can be one of the most intimidating parts of an investigator’s job, especially for those who are new to their role. Whether you're a detective working a violent crime or a Boosting Interview Confidence Through Science-Based Interviewing (SBI) Techniques compliance officer leading a workplace inquiry, it’s normal to feel unsure. The goal of any interview should be to uncover the truth, not to trap someone with a clever question or rely on “gotcha” moments, manipul

Success in high-stakes situations, such as criminal cases, compliance interviews, or HR investigations, requires more than just asking the right questions. It’s about asking the right questions for the right reasons, in the right way. That requires more than instinct or experience; it calls for strategic preparation. Integrating red teaming, setting clear interview objectives, and crafting a strategic questioning plan can elevate any investigation from routine to remarkable.

In science-based interviewing, mastering the art of questioning is not just a skill—it's a necessity. How do you ensure that the...

Investigators rely on memory as evidence, yet memory is vulnerable to distortion through post-event information and poorly framed questions. Research on the misinformation effect shows how leading questions, social influence, and timing can alter recall. Science-Based Interviewing (SBI) protects memory integrity by prioritizing early interviews, witness separation, free narratives, and the strategic use of evidence to gather accurate, reliable statement evidence.

Science-Based Interviewing (SBI) is an information-gathering approach to interview and interrogation based on peer-reviewed behavioral and cognitive science, including research funded through the FBI-administered High-Value Detainee Interrogation Group (HIG). SBI emphasizes accurate, reliable, and corroborated information through open-ended questioning, active listening, rapport, Strategic Use of Evidence, and cognitive interviewing.

Mastering the art of ethical interrogation requires a blend of skill, strategy, and dumping of antiquated interrogation techniques....

Effective investigative interviewing is one of the strongest determinants of case success. Research shows that eyewitness and subject statements often shape whether cases are solved, making interview quality critical. Science-Based Interviewing (SBI) prioritizes information gathering over confessions or lie detection, using open-ended questions, active listening, and rapport to elicit more detailed, reliable accounts. This article explores how these evidence-based techniques

Are you ready to take your interviewing skills to the next level? After all, interviews are the most important part of any investigation....

Active listening skills improve communication by helping people gather better information, build rapport, and reduce misunderstandings. Learn how open-ended questions, effective pauses, paraphrasing, emotional labels, and summaries help uncover the information beneath the surface in workplace conversations, interviews, and investigations.

Evidence rarely explains itself. Investigative interviewing gives physical, digital, and testimonial evidence context, meaning, and investigative value. Through open-ended questions, corroboration, strategic questioning, and careful testing of competing explanations, investigators can strengthen evidence, uncover new leads, challenge assumptions, and distinguish meaningful connections from coincidence. Evidence guides the interview—and the interview gives meaning to the evide

False confessions persist because flawed assumptions go unchallenged. This article uses red teaming to critically test the belief that innocent people never confess, exposing how coercive tactics, bias, and psychological vulnerability undermine investigations. Grounded in research and real-world cases, it shows how Science-Based Interviewing (SBI) and key assumption checks strengthen critical thinking, protect memory and decision-making, and produce more reliable, ethical inv

Active listening is more than hearing words. It is a core communication and investigative skill that helps people gather better information, build rapport, and support de-escalation. This article explains how effective pauses strengthen active listening by improving understanding, encouraging fuller responses, and helping interviews, investigations, and difficult conversations stay productive.

Open-ended questions are foundational to science-based interviewing because they elicit free narratives that reveal unknown unknowns—information investigators could not anticipate or know to ask about in advance. These narratives allow investigators to be surprised, opening new lines of inquiry, better follow-up questions, and more case-relevant data than closed or leading questions ever produce.