An evaluation of a self-intiated practice exercise for investigative interviewers of children

The current study extends debate and research on the important role of practice in promoting and sustaining complex skills in investigative interviewing. Specifically, we explored the use of self-initiated practice as one avenue for facilitating ongoing development of professionals who interview children about abuse. A group of 40 investigative interviewers were required to organise and administer their own practice opportunities and to document these sessions in a diary. The professionals were aware of the important role of practice and what constitutes best-practice interview guidelines; however no instruction was given about the desired format, structure and timing of the practice sessions. A combination of quantitative and qualitative analyses revealed poor adherence to self-initiated practice, and the practice (among those who adhered to this model) had negligible impact on performance. Overall, these findings highlight the need for careful monitoring and evaluation of all interviewer practice tasks.