A review of the cognitive interview

Abstract

In this critique of the Cognitive Interview (CI), discussion is organized around four themes; (1) the effectiveness of various components of the CI, (2) the relationship between the CI and other interviewing methods such as the Guided Memory Interview, the Standard Interview, and the Structured Interview, (3) different measures of memory performance and (4) the effect of training quality on interviewer performance. We attempt to comment on some of the theoretical and methodological issues to be considered in CI research and the practical considerations relating to the use of the CI in the field.