Verbal And Non Verbal Communication In Criminal Justice

Verbal and non-verbal communications, in the criminal justice settings, are both very important communication skills that shape our interactions in our everyday life. Throughout our day we experience verbal communications in many ways. Some examples are morning meetings that we have at our business with our coworkers, morning news, and even texting another person ‘hello’. Most people do not realize that verbal communication does not have to be a form of sound it is basically a group of organized words set to communicate with each other. Clarification is one of the main components of verbal communication. Without clarification our words can sometimes be misconstrued, which can cause confusion and misunderstanding.
Non-verbal communications are various gestures, facial expressions, a person’s body language or posture. For example, making eye contact with someone while they are explaining something gives them the indication that you are interested or not. The body language is a big component in non-verbal communications. The different postures of the body can give off many non-verbal indications that someone is happy, sad, scared or even nervous. Police officers and detectives are trained to observe ones verbal and non-verbal communications while interrogating victims, suspects, and even witnesses.
When a police officer or detective is interrogating a person of interest they notice and
compare both verbal and non-verbal communications as they determine whether or not the person is being truthful. They will ask the same question several times in several different ways. By doing this, the police officer or detective watches and listens for cues that would increase their accuracy of judgment. Usually when a person becomes nervous they become more defensive and their verbal communication becomes unclear. Stories will get confusing and change, they begin to stutter words, they become louder in tone and they become agitated. A person who is not truthful or guilty will then begin to shut down and so will their non-verbal communications. They will cross their arms or feet, bite their nails, shake their leg, laugh or giggle, smile and even yawn. Knowing the proper way to decode nonverbal communication in a suspect is very important for detectives to know how to do. Non-verbal communication is way that a suspect can use to hide or express feelings or thoughts. When a detective interrogates a potential suspect and the person stops talking that can also is considered non-verbal communication. When a suspect is lying but denies the accusations you can usually tell by their body language that they are not being truthful. When a person is hiding something or not being truthful their body posture will also say a lot. Someone who is innocent and who is being truthful will sit with their shoulders back, but someone who is lying will be closed off. Someone who is lying will usually make little or too much eye contact. A person who is lying will also tend to repeat the question they have been asked.
The appropriate verbal and non-verbal communication skills needed for testifying in court would be to make appropriate eye contact with jury; lack of eye contact will usually give off a signal that you are not being truthful.
Giving details when answering a question is also important because that lets the jury know that you are paying attention. Lawyers are known to ask multiple questions right after another, but before giving any answers you must think about what you are going to answer. Make sure that you are aware of what your answer will be. Be confident in what you are
saying.