Do open-minded individuals disclose more about their criminal history?
Investigative interviews play a significant role in investigations and provide key evidence in most cases. Personality differences can impact the amount and accuracy of the information that is disclosed in investigative interview settings. The purpose of the current study was to investigate the relationship between the personality trait of Openness, individuals' autobiographical memory, and their initial criminal history disclosure. The overall goal was to test the hypotheses that more Open-minded individuals disclose more about their criminal history, and that they do so due to richer and more elaborate autobiographical memories. Student participants completed a series of tasks and questionnaires online. Critically, participants were asked to recall, disclose, and describe a time they broke the law before and after listening to a model statement, as well as answer questions about their personality and memory. There was indeed evidence that more open individuals provided more and higher quality information when disclosing a time they broke the law, as did those who reported experiencing richer and more elaborate memories. The study helped establish which aspects of personality shape disclosure during investigative interviews.
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