BELIEF Interviewing Model

Effectively conducting interviews & interrogations is a crucial part of any investigative process, and assessing the information from such encounters for reliability is critical to successful outcomes. In addition to criminal investigations for law enforcement, having an effective interviewing strategy for any investigation, whether it is in the private sector, corporate setting or an educational environment, it is critical that the individuals conducting the investigations have the necessary training to gather and assess the information accurately and to reach the truth!    

The BELIEF Interviewing model is based upon the acronym BELIEF:

• Build, Extract, Look/Listen, Identify, Expand, Follow-up

This is a very effective method to gather and assess information from victims, witnesses, informants and suspects in a professional, non-confrontational manner. This program is in alignment with our core values that everyone is innocent until proven guilty, which helps eliminate personal bias and gives people the benefit of the doubt. This helps to prevent contamination of the interview, and it maximizes verbal content from the individual. Students are taught and practice in class effective ways to gather, develop and test the information obtained during the interview for veracity. In addition to enhancing practical skills and effective questioning strategies, we address the thought process and mindset of the investigator, which is critical because that is what steers the investigative process. This solid interviewing foundation also allows for the implementation of tactical and strategic use of evidence during the interview, as well as using questioning strategies such as cognitive interviewing and investigative statement analysis, which are discussed as well within the training. Students will receive a "Certificate of Training" upon successful completion. This course can be run in 3-Day and 5-Day formats to fit your training needs.