"I'm innocent!": Effects of training on judgments of truth and deception in the interrogation room

The present research examined the extent to which people can distinguish tr ue and false denials made in a criminal interrogation, and tested the hypot hesis that training in the use of verbal and nonverbal cues increases the a ccuracy of these judgments. In Phase One, 16 participants committed one of four mock crimes (breaking and entering, vandalism, shoplifting, a computer break-in) or a related but innocent act. Given incentives to deny involvem ent rather than confess, these suspects were then interrogated. In Phase Tw o, 40 observers were either trained in the analysis of verbal and nonverbal deception cues or not trained before viewing the videotaped interrogations and making their judgments. As in past studies conducted in nonforensic se ttings, observers were generally unable to distinguish between truthful and deceptive suspects. In addition, those who underwent training were less ac curate than naive controls-though they were more confident and cited more r easons for their judgments. The implications of these findings are discusse d in light of what is known about police interrogations, false confessions, and the wrongful conviction of innocent suspects.