Where I come from and how I got here

Abstract

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A vignette study of novices' interviewing skills of asylum seekers

“…Our expectation is that in real life interviews translating that knowledge into effective questioning practices will be even more difficult, due to high cognitive demands that are imposed on the interviewer (Memon et al., 1994). In real interviews, time pressure and the execution of multiple simultaneous tasks induce cognitive load, such as keeping track of the interviewee's story, empathetic listining, transcribing answers, verifying whether the communication between the interviewee and translator is smooth (see Van Veldhuizen, 2017). Especially for novice interviewers, who cannot rely on experience or routine, conducting interviews may therefore be highly demanding (Dando et al., 2010).…”

“…Statements should be (a) detailed and specific, (b) internally consistent, (c) consistent with generally known information, (d) consistent with statements by other witnesses, and (e) plausible (Gyulai, 2013; UNHCR, 2003). Whether those indicators also help distinguish truthful from fabricated accounts has been debated (e.g., Granhag et al., 2005; Herlihy et al., 2010; Herlihy et al., 2012; Van Veldhuizen, 2017). Empirical research 1 shows mixed results for the diagnostic value of the five indicators.…”

“…Notwithstanding, an assessment tool of exceeding precision is currently unavailable. A growing body of research, therefore, emphasises ways to improve credibility assessments within the current framework (e.g., Goméz Díez, 2011; Herlihy et al., 2002; Ramezankhah, 2017; Van Os et al., 2020; Van Veldhuizen, 2017).…”

Asylum Claims based on Sexual Orientation: A Review of Psycho-legal Issues in Credibility Assessments

“…However, research on how autobiographical memory is encoded, stored and retrieved has contested their validity and reliability (e.g., Herlihy et al, 2002), especially when assessing the testimonies of trauma survivors (Memon, 2012). A vague testimony does not diagnostically indicate deceit, because several factors including the limits of memory retention, communication styles characteristic of one's culture, and the presence of an interpreter can all influence the level of detail an asylumseeker provides (van Veldhuizen, 2017). In the absence of empirical support for more accurate measures of credibility, officials continue to rely on the existing indicators in their assessments.…”

On the assessment of symptom validity in refugee mental health

“…Another part of the procedure for asylum focuses on the journey to the host country. Persons seeking asylum tend to be reluctant to divulge details about their journey; as human trafficking is a criminal offence, traffickers discourage this, and relatives of the person seeking asylum may need to use the same route in the future (Van Veldhuizen, 2017). This may be an incentive to exaggerate memory impairment, such as in the TOMM.…”