Forensic Psychology talk by Charlotte Hudson from the University of Portsmouth, UK
The Department of Psychology, under the School of Science and Technology hosted a talk on forensic psychology by Ms. Charlotte Hudson, a PhD candidate from the University of Portsmouth, UK on 27 March 2019. She specialises in investigative interviewing and detecting deception through statement consistency analysis. The talk was attended by mostly Sunway University students and some staff members.
Charlotte Hudson introducing herself and the University of Portsmouth during her talk
Her talk entitled, “Getting to the Truth: How to Elicit Information from Others”, provided a deeper understanding on criminal investigative interviews, and also highlighted the process of conducting an effective interview that would not only enable investigators to elicit honest, useful and accurate information, but also ensure that criminal investigators do not infringe upon the rights of witnesses, victims, as well as suspects.
During her talk, Ms Hudson described the types of questions to be asked in interviews and emphasised the importance of cognitive interviews (i.e. interviews which incorporate both sensory as well memory recall, in order to collect in-depth information and details about a particular crime) and the use of the P.E.A.C.E. protocol in carrying out interviews (i.e. steps in conducting an investigative interview with ‘P’ referring to ‘Planning and Preparation’, E for ‘Engage and Explain’, ‘A’ for ‘Account’, ‘C’ for ‘Closure’, and ‘E’ for ‘Evaluation’).
Ms. Hudson field questions from the audience
There were also interactive sessions during the talk that allowed participants to attempt their own line of investigative questioning after witnessing videos of hypothetical crime scenes. Many of the participants found the interactive sessions to be highly engaging as it provided them with the opportunity to apply what they had learnt from the talk.
Overall, Ms Hudson’s talk on investigative interviews was enriching and very-well received by the participants. Graduating student from the BSc (Hons) Psychology Programme, Michael Ch’ng, mentioned that: “the talk was good because it gave me some new insights into forensic investigations. I also really liked the last thing Ms. Hudson said about shifting the perspective on investigations such that, instead of focusing on catching the right criminal, the priority should be to avoid placing innocent people, who have been wrongly accused, in jail”. Another participant, Ng J-Wen, also mentioned that the talk helped her better understand how investigative interviews were like, and also provided her with new insights into this aspect of Forensic Psychology. Final year psychology student, Marisha Barth Ubrani commented that Ms Hudson made the most of her hour-long talk by being was cohesive and succinct to the point that anyone from any background could understand.
Ms Charlotte Hudson with the audience after her talk.
The Department of Psychology would like to thank Gradsmate Malaysia for facilitating the organisation of this talk with the University of Portsmouth. We also wish Ms Charlotte Hudson all the best in her PhD studies, and that her research will contribute significantly to the field of forensic psychology.
