Application of the transformed-interview method in investigation of sexual crimes in Ukraine

Abstract

The crime detection of sexual violence needs to be optimized and improved. This study aims to substantiate, elaborate, and apply in practice the method of a transformed interview (based on mathematical modeling) to obtain information about sexual violence. For the first time the transformed-interview method was used while studying the hidden (latent) victims of sexual violence who do not want to report a crime to law enforcement agencies because they do not want the fact of violence against them to be made public. Participated 2570 Ukrainian women of different social status, 16-35 years old. It was found that the increase of intermediaries during the information transmission reduces reliability of the information about crimes against the person’s sexual inviolability. While investigating such types of crimes the needed information can be obtained with a higher degree of reliability not from the victim, but from her closest surroundings. The transformed-interview method proved to be an effective tool to extract the information related to the behavior of both the offender and his victim. This method shows reliability and makes it possible to reduce the latency of most crimes in the situation of the victim’s refusal to testify at the re-trial investigation.