From an investigator’s perspective: challenges and opportunities in building and maintaining rapport in cross-cultural investigative interviewing contexts

Purpose Given the geopolitical context of war, terrorism, human trafficking and organized crime, the pursuit of justice increasingly relies on effective interactions between individuals from diverse cultural backgrounds. Interviewers who fail to communicate effectively with interviewees from different cultural backgrounds to themselves risk derailing investigations, jeopardize the safety of potential victims and compromise the delivery of justice. Building rapport constitutes a critical component of effective investigative interviewing and is associated with enhanced investigative outcomes (i.e. detailed and informative accounts). The main objective of the current research was to explore the perceptions of investigators, experienced in the conduct of cross-cultural interviews, with respect to building rapport in interviews with people from diverse cultural backgrounds. Design/methodology/approach The authors conducted 13 focus groups with a culturally diverse sample of investigative professionals to examine their perceptions of challenges and opportunities pertaining to building rapport in cross-cultural interviews. Findings Given the exploratory nature of the research objective and the absence of prior research on this issue, the authors used a qualitative approach to reflect on key themes and subthemes in our data. The authors extracted four key themes as underpinning approaches to building rapport in cross-cultural interviews: i) preparation; (ii) situational awareness (during the interview); (iii) relationship building through communication; and (iv) hierarchy in interviews. Practical implications These results highlight the value of cultural competence and benefits of cultural humility in the domain investigative interviewing. Originality/value Understanding the challenges and opportunities for improved investigative interviewing in cross-cultural contexts is crucial for research, training and practice going forward.