Development of the Reporting Information about Networks and Groups (RING) task: a method for eliciting information from memory about associates, groups, and networks
| Date | 11 November 2019 |
| Pages | 240-247 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/JFP-04-2019-0011 |
| Published date | 11 November 2019 |
| Author | Lorraine Hope,Feni Kontogianni,Kristoffer Geyer,Wayne Thomas |
| Subject Matter | Health & social care |
Development of the Reporting Information
about Networks and Groups (RING) task:
a method for eliciting information from
memory about associates, groups,
and networks
Lorraine Hope, Feni Kontogianni, Kristoffer Geyer and Wayne Thomas
Abstract
Purpose –Eliciting detailed and comprehensive information about the structure, organisation and
relationships between individuals involved in organised crime gangs, terrorist cells and networks is a
challenge in investigations and debriefings. Drawing on memory theory, the purpose of this paper is to
develop and test the Reporting Information about Networks and Groups (RING) task, using an innovative
piece of information elicitation software.
Design/methodology/approach –Using an experimental methodology analogous to an intelligence
gathering context, participants (n ¼124) were asked to generate a visual representation of the “network”of
individuals attending a recent family event using the RING task.
Findings –All participants successfully generated visual representations of the relationships between people
attending a remembered social event. The groups or networks represented in the RING task output diagrams
also reflected effective use of the software functionality with respect to “describing”the nature of the
relationships between individuals.
Practical implications –The authors succeeded in establishing the usability of the RING task software for
reporting detailed information about groups of individuals and the relationships betweenthose individuals in a
visual format. A number of important limitations and issues for future research to consider are examined.
Originality/value –The RING task is an innovative development to support the elicitation of targeted
information about networks of people and the relationships between them. Given the importance of
understanding human networks in order to disrupt criminal activity, the RING task may contribute to
intelligence gathering and the investigation of organised crime gangs and terrorist cells and networks.
Keywords Memory, Organized crime, Terrorism, Interviewing
Paper type Technical paper
Familial, friendship and formal relationships between individuals in networks, and connections
between and across such networks are “crucial determinants of performance, sustainability and
success of both criminal and terrorist organisations”(Ozgul, 2016, p. 41). Information about terrorist
or other criminal networks might be obtained from numerous sources, including live observations,
historical patterns, digital communications, telephone records, etc. To date, however, one important
source of such information has received little attention. Human informants (who might be witnesses,
suspects or other sources) often have detailed and rich understandings of social groups they observe
or are part of. In the absence of dedicated tools or techniques for eliciting information of this nature,
obtaining detailed and comprehensive insights from cooperative sources about the individuals
involved in organised crime gangs and terrorist cells and networks often presents a challenge. Thus,
our aim was to develop a tool designed to facilitate the reporting of information about networks of
individuals and then test whether individuals could use the tool to represent remembered groups of
people and the nature of relationships between them.
Received 12 April 2019
Revised 23 August 2019
27 August 2019
Accepted 30 August 2019
This research was funded by the
Centre for Research and Evidence
on Security Threats (ESRC Award:
ES/N009614/1).
Lorraine Hope and
Feni Kontogianni are both
based at the University of
Portsmouth, Portsmouth, UK.
Kristoffer Geyer is based at the
Lancaster University,
Lancaster, UK.
Wayne Thomas is based at the
University of Portsmouth,
Portsmouth, UK.
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JOURNAL OF FORENSIC PRACTICE
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VOL. 21 NO. 4 2019, pp. 240-247, © Emerald Publishing Limited, ISSN 2050-8794 DOI 10.1108/JFP-04-2019-0011
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