Multidisciplinary Program on Oral Testimony

MPORT consists of three different research strands which address the following legal challenges:

Reluctant witnesses
Memory problems in remote and repeated criminal events
Cultural and linguistic challenges

The research findings from MPORT will result in scientifically based practical recommendations and tools to help law enforcement authorities investigate and prosecute serious crimes.

Reluctant witnesses

Early oral evidence

This research strand examines the possible consequences of documenting early oral testimony for later presentation as evidence at a court hearing. There are several obvious advantages to early documentation of evidence, such as the possibility of calling witnesses who would be reluctant to participate in a main hearing, as well as reducing the risk of the memory impact that can occur over a longer period of time. At the same time, early questioning it poses new legal challenges. In addition, the psychological consequences of early testimony are yet poorly explored in research. In our research we will examine, among other things, how the actual reliability of a statement is affected by the time elapsed since witnessing an event. Previous research has examined this within a limited time frame (up to a few weeks), while our research will examine a much longer, and more realistic, time frame (from a few days up to 1.5 years). Another important aspect to investigate is how early (vs. late) documented statements are perceived and assessed. We have recently started studies investigating how the perceived reliability of a statement is affected by the time elapsed between the event and the statement.

PhD student Naiara Ferreira is writing her thesis within this research strand. 

Anonymous witnesses
Allowing witnesses to be anonymous is a controversial approach, and views on the matter vary considerably. If you think about 'anonymous witnesses' from a distance, it is easy to highlight at least one benefit; witnesses who would not have dared to come forward if their identity had been known can contribute with important evidence. But if you think about it further, you see that 'anonymous witnesses' can also create problems, for example in terms of the reliability of the testimony and in terms of the defendant's ability to defend himself. There are many opinions about anonymous witnesses, but very little research. As part of our project, we will look at the outcomes of the use of anonymous witnesses in other countries (e.g. England and the Netherlands) and try to answer questions such as: how many more people would testify if they had the opportunity to testify anonymously and to what extent (if at all) is the reliability of a statement affected by testifying anonymously compared to testifying under traditional circumstances?

Memory problems for repeated of distant criminal events

The goal of this research strand is to develop effective methods to collect information from witnesses who have experienced events repeatedly and/or far back in time. We will conduct archival research of investigations and prosecutions. This will be done to estimate actual time frames from witnessing or experiencing a criminal event to presenting evidence in court, and to better understand how courts reason about distant memories and memories of repeated events. We will also develop and evaluate scientifically sound methods for interviewing witnesses. We will test these techniques using laboratory experiments.

Impaired memory is a significant barrier to prosecuting crimes characterized by delayed reporting and repeated victimization (e.g., repeated physical, psychological, or sexual abuse). We will empirically investigate (i) a self-administered interview that allows witnesses to report without delay and (ii) techniques to help complainants describe specific cases of repeated abuse.

PhD student Lisa Lindgren is writing her thesis within this research track. 

Cultural and linguistic barriers

Cultural and linguistic differences can complicate investigations in cases where the suspect, victim and/or witnesses come from foreign cultures (e.g. in cases of honor-based oppression, trafficking and extremist crimes). We will empirically explore (i) a set of tools for conducting culturally sensitive interviews (ii) the use of interpreters. 
 

The focus is on gaining a more complete understanding of the challenges of gathering evidence from witnesses from different cultures and developing a toolkit for culturally sensitive interviews. we will conduct focus groups and interviews with lawyers experienced in working cross-culturally to increase our understanding of the challenges of gathering evidence from different cultures. We will also conduct focus groups and interviews with members of minority groups in multicultural contexts (i.e. cultural groups that may not be well represented among legal actors, such as police and prosecutors), to gain a better understanding of how members of these groups experience cross-cultural contact with the justice system. We will then develop tools to develop culturally sensitive interviews (e.g. how to work effectively with interpreters, how to take cultural differences into account). 

Members
 

Psychology:

• Pär Anders Granhag
  Professor
  University of Gothenburg
• Karl Ask
  Professor
  University of Gothenburg
• Sara Landström
  Professor
  University of Gothenburg
• Timothy Luke
  Associate professor
  University of Gothenburg
• Mikaela Magnusson
  Lecturer
  University of Gothenburg
• Emelie Ernberg 
  Lecturer
  University of Gothenburg
• Naiara Ferreira Vieira Castello
  PhD student
  University of Gothenburg
• Lisa Lindgren
  PhD student
  University of Gothenburg
• Minna Määttä
  Research assistant
  University of Gothenburg
  anonyma vittnen
• Lorraine Hope 
  Professor
  University of Portsmouth (the UK)
• David Neequaye 
  Lecturer
  Lancaster University (the UK)
• Erik Mac Giolla 
  Lecturer
  Atlantic Technical University (Irland)

Law: 

• Görel Granström
  Professor
  Umeå university
• Anna Kaldal
  Lecturer
  University of Gothenburg

Criminology:

• Jan de Keijser
  Professor
  Leiden University (the Netherlands)