When participants see video-taped interviews at our seminars, it is obvious that our interviewers take a written note following each response offered by a subject. The Reid Technique advocates active note taking during a structured interview for three reasons. First, taking a written note following each response slows down the pace of questioning. It is much easier to lie to a series of questions asked in quick succession than the same questions asked five or seven seconds apart. When questions are not separated by a period of silence, the accompanying behavior symptoms of deception are greatly reduced.
Innocent subjects are comfortable with the silence note taking creates.
They realize that the investigator is writing out their answer and they simply wait for the next question to be asked. Deceptive subjects, on the other hand, are uncomfortable with this period of silence. Because their original response to the question was less than truthful, they may modify or qualify it during the time in which the investigator takes a written note. This behavior, in and of itself, can be a good indication of deception. Second, taking written notes helps the investigator focus on key aspects of the subject's behavior during a response.