Customer Reviews

Interviewing and Interrogation

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2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I've been a police officer for over 10 years. Lately I've been doing more interviews so I purchased this book. Not only was the book boring but it not for cops. It seems designed for a school class where the students are forced to read it. If your looking for a book try Practical Aspects of Interview and Interrogation by Zulawski.

Like one of the other reviewers, I'm in parole and thought this might be helpful for the everyday work of interrogations. But unlike the other reviewer, I did not find it of much use at all. I found the writing mediocre, the concepts basic, and the organization extremely poor. The result was that the book managed the unusual feat of being both simplistic and hard to follow at the same time.
The author loves to pose questions. At the end (or sometimes in the middle) of several sample interrogations he poses questions to the reader, such as "Identify two 'hidden' admissions of complicity by the subject" or "Between lines 66 and 91, the subject contradicts his own narrative. What is the contradiction?" These questions are just dandy if you know just what the author is getting at, but if you don't, well, you're plumb out of luck, because he doesn't bother to give you any answers! The sheer volume of "test yourself" questions with no answers provided to see if you're getting the right idea is a significant shortcoming.

In the business of Probation and Parole I hear every story and excuse in the book every day. Being able to sort fact fron fiction is a full time job.I found Mr. Rabon's book well written, practical and ready to go to work. Written like a course book with review questions at the end of each chapter to better understand the information. Mr. Rabon wants you to learn his techniques and put them to use. They really work!

I took this course from Don Rabon at the North Carolina Justice Academy years ago. I used information from this book and the course for many years. Mr. Rabon himself would tell you it is not totally comprehensive. A lot of things must be done hands on so to speak. Still it was a very valuable tool. This is the second one I have as the first from the course was falling apart. It is an excellent directional to continue to build on...

This is an excellent volume on analysis of a written statement and is a companion volume to Rabon's Investigative Discourse Analysis text. If I were to use them in any particular order, I would use Investigative Discourse Analysis to gain an understanding of the importance of word choice and to build awareness of word choices prior to going on to developing interviewing skills. (Assuming that I'm new to the interviewing arena, but excellent refresher material at any stage.)

I've had the pleasure of both reading these two texts and attending multi-day presentations by Rabon on statement analysis and interviewing & interrogation and can say that he does not waste time or space on fluff. His material is both substantive and carefully researched.

Rabon knows his stuff. In my mind, this material is primary and texts by other, well-known and recognized authorities in the field of interviewing and interrogation are secondary in my library on the subject.

So that you know the perspective from which I come, my work involves fraud - primarily in the areas of embezzlement and financial statement fraud.

Don Rabon's credentials speak for themselves. He is a very long term trainer in interviewing with an emphasis upon discourse analysis in legally sound interviewing. His works (including "Investigative Discourse Analysis") are not a "Cliff Notes" or "MTV video" of interviewing which appears to be desired by our society, rather they are thoughtful and careful works, like pieces of a puzzle, where study and practice are needed to embrace the techniques.

There is no "quick fix" to the art of interviewing and it is not something for the unlearned, but if your profession calls for interviewing skills, and you have a basic foundation of grammar, you will love this book. It is to be read slowly and carefully. I marked up mine.

It saddens me to read of police officers who did not "stay the course" and learn the material.

Those who are our country's best in Statement Analysis, are those who practice their craft, forever learning and forever growing in their understanding of interviewing.