Inside the Interview Room: PEACE, CREATIVE & The Fight Against Bias
PEACE and CREATIVE interview models compared, plus the cognitive biases — confirmation, anchoring, truth bias — that structured interviewing keeps in check.
Interviewing is one of the most powerful — and vulnerable — tools in any investigator’s skillset. What separates a strong interview from a weak one is often not just what questions are asked, but how we structure the entire process.
Two leading frameworks help investigators navigate this challenge: The PEACE Model and The CREATIVE Model. Both serve the same goal: offering a roadmap for structured interviews that generate reliable, defensible evidence while minimizing risks of contamination.
The PEACE Model is commonly used in law enforcement and compliance. It's a 5-step process:
Preparation & Planning – Identify your objectives, review case materials, and plan the logistics and strategy of the interview.
Engage & Explain – Build rapport and set expectations: explain the interview’s purpose, structure, and ground rules.
Account – Use open-ended questioning to obtain the interviewee’s full narrative without interruption.
Closure – Wrap up respectfully, summarize key points, and clarify next steps or follow-up.
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Topics: Investigations
