A criminal investigation is a broad, complex matter to solve. In a dynamic setting of active and still-evolving events, detectives must make vital decisions quickly – sometimes risking life and death – based on scant information.
Under the law, detectives are responsible and allowed to make decisions that will have a significant impact on the lives of individuals concerned. The stakes are enormous, the scenery is unattractive, and there is no room for error.
Detectives are frequently portrayed as evil masterminds. They appear to be endowed with almost mystical personal abilities that the normal individual can only aspire to. Sorry to let you down, but this isn’t totally accurate. You don’t have to be a detective to think like one. A few tools and strategies can help you develop your inner detective, locate facts, and learn more about the relationships between them.
In fact, when making any major life decisions when it’s risky to jump to conclusions – such as when buying a new home, employing a new employee, or planning a career change – it’s prudent to exercise the same detachment and patience that expert detectives employ.
Remember that your brain will always try to persuade you that your first impression was correct. To bring out your inner detective, you’ll need to make a conscious effort to go deeper into all of the available data and conduct a more methodical and complete study of the strengths and weaknesses of potential conclusions before making a decision.
We’ll walk you through the steps of adopting a detective’s attitude to any investigation in your life in the next part.
- Make no assumptions and discover what you truly know.
To think like a professional detective, you must adopt an ‘investigative mindset.’ As they are in every genuine investigation and at every crime scene, the keywords ‘possible’ and ‘could’ should be your watchwords. This is known as the ABC concept in detective handbooks:
- Assume nothing
- Believe nothing
- Challenge and check everything
Nothing should be taken at face value or taken for granted. Expert investigators will always approach any information or evidence with scepticism. Until they aren’t, all stories are feasible.
‘What do I know?’ and ‘What do I not know?’ are two questions you should always ask yourself. It can be difficult to do this at times, but even attempting to slow down your otherwise conclusion-jumping brain can be beneficial.
Always keep in mind that correlation does not indicate causation. As a result, the most secure method of testing any idea is to try to disprove it. Assume you believe your house keys have been misplaced or stolen. In this case, it’s a good idea to double-check and rule out all other possibilities before changing your locks.
Sherlock Holmes, the fictitious detective created by Arthur Conan Doyle, coined the sole real investigative mantra in 1890. ‘When you’ve ruled out the impossible, whatever remains, no matter how improbable, must be the truth.’
- Until they aren’t, all stories are feasible.
Agatha Christie had no clue when she created Hercule Poirot that she would write books about him for decades.
The Belgian investigator, unlike Sherlock, is both left and right-brained. Morality also plays a big part in how he gets to the truth. Poirot is a storyteller as much as a detective.
Poirot believes that everyone has a story to share. Most of them are contradictory; most of them are illusions. The investigator is patient, and he listens to a variety of versions of what happened and why it happened. He gives everyone the opportunity to express themselves.
Christie’s tales included a slew of suspects who all appeared equally insincere until the true culprit was discovered. Poirot is aided in his understanding of the victim’s personality through stories. And to figure out why the murderer did it.
Nothing should be taken for granted. There are no mental shortcuts for the Belgian detective. He doesn’t accept other people’s judgments, and he also doesn’t jump to conclusions. Every single piece must be placed in its proper location.
- Make a list of all plausible reasons.
In the Sherlock Holmes stories, our hero often challenges Dr. Watson, a scientist, on the virtues of deductive logic. In fact, Holmes’ preferred logical approach is abductive logic, which is the cognitive process of choosing the best potential explanation for a given set of observations, rather than deduction, which is reasoning on the basis of existing facts.
In the absence of comprehensive knowledge, abductive reasoning is widely recognised as a potent process for hypothetical reasoning. It is commonly referred to as “reasoning from effects to causes.” Only very rarely does Holmes participate in the type of deduction that he praises so much.
When a doctor makes a medical diagnosis, abductive reasoning is commonly used: given a group of symptoms, what is the diagnosis that best explains the majority of them? There will always be more alternative answers than you first realised as a general rule – and due to our conclusion-loving brain. A wise doctor will not make the first diagnosis that comes to mind, but will instead explore a variety of possibilities to discover which one best suits the patient’s symptoms.
- Experiment with different reasons and focus your search.
Now is the time to get serious about the probe. This is where Sherlock Holmes’ motto of removing the impossible comes into play. Try to rule out as many possible explanations or lines of inquiry as possible. Theories, like science, can only be genuinely tested through falsification.
You’ll need a rigorous way to keep track of all your alternate explanations and information requirements. You risk becoming a slave to your first and finest idea if you don’t have it.
To assist, my colleagues and I devised a model. It’s far from ideal, but it’s certainly preferable to having no model at all. This method is known as the 6-Cs approach:
First of all – what do you know? Collect the available information and check the facts. Are they relevant, accurate and reliable? Connect the dots. Do different sources say the same? Find out what you don’t know.
Next, construct all possible solutions and hypotheses. What does the available information allow for? What do we need to check, and what can be cross-checked? What can be ruled out? What remains possible?
Now, consider what information you need the most in order to test your remaining hypotheses? Before you implement your plan, always consult somebody you trust, to help narrow the scope of your investigation by repeating this process from step one.
- Make use of a mind map.
As you can see, there are more alternatives than you may have considered at first. We need practical ways and information-handling tools to keep track of our investigations in order to help our weak minds. This will make your brain more precise and lower the chances of it rushing to conclusions too quickly.
As a result, you should maintain track of your investigation using a matrix or mind map that lists all of the potential sources of further information against all of the possible explanations for the crime scene (see table below).
This will also promote transparency, allowing you to get a second view on your thoughts and conclusions, and you’ll be able to observe if information from various sources narrows your research over time.
- Obtain the services of a ‘devil’s advocate.’
In almost every investigation, there will be something you’ve forgotten or don’t fully comprehend. That is why a critical and open-minded friend, such as Dr Watson from the Sherlock Holmes novels, is so important. ‘You have a grand gift of silence, Watson,’ Holmes said.
It makes you an extremely useful companion.’ He is known as the “devil’s advocate.” Dr. Watson’s function is to be sceptical and point out items that Holmes may have missed or misunderstood.
- Consider going backwards.
Most of us think ahead while trying to solve a problem or attain a goal. We start with a broad concept in mind and then look for ways to move forward. We can get lost in the choices and options if we take this approach.
Backward thinking is not the same as forward thinking. You start with a clear idea of the final result and work backward to figure out the specific stages that will get you there. You eliminate the needless action steps that will not assist you in attaining your objective or solving your problem, and you keep focused on the end result. Reverse engineering is a term used to describe this process.
- Remove yourself from the situation.
It’s quite difficult to’mentally check out when engaged in any task that requires our whole focus, whether it’s producing a creative piece, starting a business, or making sales calls. We’re thinking about it even while we’re not near it. While commuting, enjoying dinner with family, spending time with friends—even in the bathroom—a dozen tabs on the problem are open in the back of our thoughts.
Instead of being dominated by immediate simulation, psychologists term this “psychological distance”: “to step back and without an instant response, assess the surroundings, and reflect on the course of action” (Giesbrecht, Müller, & Miller, 2010). This gives you the opportunity to acquire perspective and select a suitable response.
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Remember that facts, new views, and ideas can appear in the most unexpected places. As a result, all skilled investigators should show empathy, humility, ask questions, and improve their listening abilities. Silence and active listening tactics like nodding and humming are used in investigative interviews to gently hold back your own opinion, ask open-ended questions, and use silence and active listening techniques like nodding and humming.
Listening to your devil’s advocate is part of this. Receptivity to different viewpoints is an important trait for any decision-maker in the modern era, not just investigators. Lone wolves have no place in a world where complexity is continually increasing.