dr. L. Weiher (Lynn)

My research aims to 1) improve investigative interviewing practices aiming towards obtaining high-quality information by using evidence-based procedures. And 2), advance interview practices with vulnerable citizens.

Further, I test motion capture (XSens) as a bias free real time measure of rapport (i.e., mimicry) within interpersonal communication.

Medicine & Life Sciences

# Emotional Adjustment
# Law Enforcement
# Oral Hygiene
# Police
# Psychological Adaptation
# Self Concept

Social Sciences

# Hygiene
# Law Enforcement Officers

Faculty of Behavioural, Management and Social Sciences (BMS), Psychology of Conflict, Risk and Safety (PCRS)

I aim to 1) improve investigative interviewing practices aiming towards obtaining high-quality information by using evidence-based procedures. And 2), advance interview practices with vulnerable citizens:

1) Building directly from my PhD, I will use my expertise regarding interpersonal communication and rapport to realise facilitation of behaviour change. To develop a clearer understanding of the mechanism that explained how rapport can facilitate behaviour change, I plan to continue studying rapport combining motion capture suits and VR.

2) This theme develops my expertise in interpersonal communication and applies it to additional police-citizen interactions beyond the case of reluctant suspects. At present we have some understanding of the inputs (e.g. interview style) and the outcomes (e.g. disclosed information) but very limited understanding of the dynamic process of the interaction itself – especially in regard to vulnerable interviewees. E.g., I aim to develop training packages to improve interviewer conduct and help them to facilitate cooperation from interviewees that may find it especially difficult to engage in the interview process.

Peer Reviewed Papers

Oleszkiewicz, S., Weiher, L., & Mac Giolla, E. (2022). The adaptable law enforcement officer: Exploring adaptability in a covert police context. Legal and criminological psychology, 27(2), 265-282.

Weiher, L. (2021, December 16). An Academic Christmas Carol: A ghost story of Christmas. Retrieved from osf.io/b934h (https://osf.io/45gxf/)

Taylor P., Banks F., Jolley D., Ellis D., Watson, S. J., Weiher, L., Davidson B. & Julku J. (2021) Oral hygiene effects verbal and nonverbal displays of confidence, The Journal of Social Psychology, 161:2, 182-196, DOI: 10.1080/00224545.2020.1784825

Weiher, L. (2020). The impact of interview style on the development, maintenance, and transfer of rapport (Doctoral dissertation, Lancaster University).

Peer Reviewed Conference Talks

Weiher, L., Watson, S. J., Luther, K., & Taylor, P. J. (2018, June). An investigation of rapport maintenance over multiple interviews – Does PEACE hold any advantage over Reid? Paper presented at the European Association of Psychology and Law Conference, Turku, Finland.

Weiher, L., Watson, S. J., Luther, K., & Taylor, P. J. (2018, June). An investigation of rapport maintenance over multiple interviews – Does PEACE hold any advantage over Reid? Paper presented at the CREST international conference on Behavioural and Social Sciences in Security, Lancaster, UK.

Weiher, L., Watson, S. J., Luther, K., & Taylor, P. J. (2018, June). Capturing coordination to predict outcomes in investigative interviews: Can motion capture technology finally provide a reliable measure of rapport? Paper presented at the American Psychology-Law Society Conference, Memphis, Tennessee, USA[1].

Weiher, L., & Riesner, L. (2017, May). Beauty or the Beast? - The impact of attractiveness, type of crime and gender on the general public’s need of punishment. Paper presented at the European Association of Psychology and Law Conference, Mechelen, Belgium.

Weiher, L., Luther, K., & Taylor, P. J. (2017, June). Three-minute thesis. Paper presented at the Postgraduate Psychology Conference, Lancaster, UK.

Invited Talks

Weiher, L., Watson, S. J., Luther, K., & Taylor, P. J. (2019, May). Effects of the investigator's interviewing style on the establishment, maintenance and transference of rapport. Paper presented at the Psychology Seminar Series 2018/19 at Newcastle University, Newcastle Upon Tyne, UK.

Poster presentations

Weiher, L., Watson, S. J., Luther K., & Taylor, P. J. (2018, September). The Role of Rapport in the Investigative Interview – Exploring Motion-Capture Equipment as a Potential Measure for Rapport. Poster presented at the CRESTfest, Cheltenham, UK. https://crestresearch.ac.uk/resources/weiher-rapport-investigative-interview/

Weiher, L., Winters, C., Taylor, P. J., & Luther, K. (2018, July). Reciprocity as social influence: The influence of social reciprocity on information provision in the investigative interview. Poster presented at the CREST international conference on Behavioural and Social Sciences in Security, Lancaster, UK.

Weiher, L., Luther, K. & Taylor, P. J. (2017, November). Through the Looking Glass: Exploring the relationship between nonverbal and verbal behaviour on rapport and dyadic cooperation. Poster presented at the Defence and Security Doctoral Symposium 2017, Swindon, UK. https://crestresearch.ac.uk/resources/lynn-weiher-poster/

Courses in the current academic year are added at the moment they are finalised in the Osiris system. Therefore it is possible that the list is not yet complete for the whole academic year.