Spill it! : En experimentell utvärdering av förhörstaktiken Mockingbird

Sammanfattning: The purpose of this study is to investigate a new interrogation tactic named Mockingbird. The tactic is derived from a growing tradition within the science of interrogation. The tradition emphasizes creating a working relationship between the interviewer and the informant, while previous interrogation work has valued a more formal approach. The Mockingbird-tactic is developed to elicit specific information from the informant without the informant perceiving that this information has been shared. The aim of this study is to compare the Mockingbird-tactic against the tactic of asking an explicit question with regards to which information that is elicited. The aim of the study is also to compare the two tactics regarding the informant's perception of what information has been requested and shared. The research questions was formulated as follows: "Which of the interrogation tactics is more effective when it comes to generating specific information?" and "How does the tactics affect the informants perception of requested and shared information?" A total of 53 individuals participated in the experiment that was followed up by a verbal questionnaire. The data was analyzed with Chi2-tests and showed that asking an explicit question was more effective regarding generating specific information. The effectiveness of the Mockingbird tactic was dependent on the topic which the confederate was looking for. The informant’s perception of requested and shared information was not statistically analyzed due to inadequate data. Only eight out of 52 participants perceived that specific information was requested