Decision Making and Decisional Tipping Points in Homicide Investigations: An Interview Study of British and Norwegian Detectives

摘要

An interview study explored criminal detectives’ views of critical factors related to decisionnmaking in homicide investigations. Experienced homicide investigators in Norwayn(n = 15) and the UK (n = 20) were asked to identify decisional ‘tipping points’—decisionsnthat put detectives in a mindset focused on verifying the guilt of a suspect—and situationalnor individual factors that relate to these decisions. Two types of decisions were identifiednas typical and potentially critical tipping points: (1) decisions to name, arrest, or chargena suspect, and (2) decisions on main strategies and lines of inquiry in the case. Moreover,n10 individual factors (e.g. experience) and 14 situational factors (e.g. information availability)nwere reported as related to the likelihood of a mindset shift, most of which correspondnwell with findings in previous decision-making research. The consensus betweennBritish and Norwegian detectives was very high, and the findings indicate that experiencedndetectives are aware of many of the risk factors and obstacles to optimal decision makingnthat exist in criminal investigations. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.