Effectiveness of Witness Preparation and Cross-Examination Non-Directive and Directive Leading Question Styles on Witness Accuracy and Confidence
| Author | Sarah Woods,Jacqueline M. Wheatcroft |
| DOI | 10.1350/ijep.2010.14.3.353 |
| Published date | 01 July 2010 |
| Date | 01 July 2010 |
| Subject Matter | Article |
WITNESS PREPARATION AND CROSS-EXAMINATION QUESTIONING STYLES
Effectiveness of witness
preparation and
cross-examination
non-directive and
directive leading
question styles on
witness accuracy and
confidence
By Dr Jacqueline M. Wheatcroft*and
School of Psychology, University of Liverpool, UK
Sarah Woods
Department of Psychology & Social Change, Manchester
Metropolitan University, UK
Abstract There is presently little research that examines the effects of preparing
witnesses to give the most accurate evidence in court. The aim of the investi-
gation reported in this article was to explore whether witness preparation in
the form of preparation statements would impact upon outcomes in respect of
cross-examination questioning strategies employed in court. Specifically, the
doi:10.1350/ijep.2010.14.3.353
THE INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF EVIDENCE & PROOF (2010) 14 E&P 187–207 187
* Email: jacmw@liverpool.ac.uk. The authors would like to thank Dr Louise Ellison of the
Department of Law, University of Leeds, for her constructive and helpful commentary on a
previous version of this article.
study focused upon familiarisation and leading question style effects upon
witness accuracy and confidence.
Keywords Cross-examination; Leading question style; Witness preparation;
Accuracy; Confidence
Introduction to witness preparation
n England and Wales there is evidence that increasing numbers of
witnesses are attending witness-training courses to prepare them for the
process of testifying in legal proceedings. Current providers of this
service include leading legal training consultancy Bond Solon, the College of Law,
the Inns of Court School of Law, the Crown Prosecution Service, as well as smaller
operations catering to specific professional groups (for example, social workers
and medical professionals).1Despite a cautious view of witness familiarisation,
the courts have recently endorsed this practice, approving the right of barristers to
prepare witnesses on conduct appropriate to the courtroom and more specifically
how to give effective evidence.2
One key aim of witness-training programmes is to identify standard tactics used
by lawyers during the course of cross-examination and to provide witnesses with
practical advice on how best to approach the interaction.3Witnesses are thus
informed about the basic rationale of cross-examination (i.e. to discredit opposing
testimony) and directed to listen carefully to questions, to request clarification
where appropriate and never to answer a question they do not understand. Under-
lying this advice is a belief that common courtroom questioning techniques can
cause confusion and militate against the provision of complete and accurate
testimony in legal proceedings.4There is substantial support for this view in the
wider research literature outlined further in this article.5First, it is perhaps
important to contextualise why it is necessary to support, prepare and assist
witnesses in order that they can be effective in giving evidence in court. According
188 THE INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF EVIDENCE & PROOF
WITNESS PREPARATION AND CROSS-EXAMINATION QUESTIONING STYLES
I
1 P. Cooper, ‘Witness Preparation’ (2005) 1753 NLJ 155.
2RvMomodou [2005] EWCA Crim 177, [2005] 2 All ER 571.
3 C. Bond and M. Solon, The Expert Witness in Court. A Practical Guide (Shaw & Sons: London, 1999); J.
Stockdale and P. Gresham, Presenting Evidence in Court: A Guide to Good Practice for Police Officers (Police
Research Group: London, 1995).
4 D. Carson, Professionals and the Courts: Handbook for Expert Witnesses (Venture Press: Sussex, 1990); D.
Tunno, ‘Preparing Expert Witnesses’ (2004) 18 Trial Practice 11; K. Mellili, ‘Witness Preparation’
(2006) American Jurisprudence Trials 61.
5 J. M. Wheatcroft, G. F. Wagstaff and M. R. Kebbell, ‘The Influence of Courtroom Questioning Style
on Actual and Perceived Eyewitness Confidence and Accuracy’ (2004) 9 Legal and Criminological
Psychology 83; J. M. Wheatcroft and G. F. Wagstaff, ‘Cross-examination: The Interface between
Psychology and the Courtroom’ (2003) 75 Forensic Update 8; M. R. Kebbell and D. C. Giles, ‘Some
Experimental Influences of Lawyers’ Complicated Questions on Eyewitness Confidence and
Accuracy’ (2000) 134(2) Journal of Psychology, Interdisciplinary and Applied 129.
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