Ever get the feeling that someone has been lying to you? Thosewho attended last month's International Association of SpecialInvestigation Units conference in Phoenix may just have had theirsuspicions confirmed.

“In an insurance investigation, you are looking at whether ornot the [suspect] is credible,” said Joseph P. Buckley, presidentof John E. Reid and Associates, in a seminar on interviewing andinterrogation techniques. Buckley cautioned that no behavior isalways consistent with telling the truth or lying, but many commoncharacteristics can guide investigators' instincts in the rightdirection.

An effective interrogation process, Buckley explained, involvesthree major points. Behavior Symptom Analysis describes the verbaland non-verbal behavioral characteristics that distinguish atruthful person from one who is withholding or fabricating relevantinformation. The Behavior Analysis Interview is structured toelicit both factual and behavioral information so as to suggestinvestigative direction. The third item is an interrogation processthat is designed to obtain an admission of guilt.