To begin, simply click on the items relevant to your investigation.

[Information Professional] 

The two most common reasons you'll have for conducting background-check-related interviews are (1) checking an individual's references or lifestyle, and (2) skip tracing, or attempting to locate a missing person. A third possible reason is job interviewing (interviewing a job candidate.) Any of these types of interview can conceivably be handled either in person or by telephone. But whenever possible, you should interview in person in order to be in a better position to gauge the individual's reactions to your questions. 

Here are some useful interviewing tips and techniques. 

1. Be an active listener. Few interviewers understand the importance of this, but active listening is vital. Give the interviewee your full attention (don't take notes while he or she is speaking); be aware not only of what he says but how he says it (e.g., nervously, defensively, nonchalantly, etc.). Be aware of his body language (e.g., lack of eye contact, slouching, turning away, etc.). At the same time be aware of your own manner and tone, and your own body language, as these can seriously affect how the interviewee reacts. 

2. When calling a job applicant's references, you naturally expect that these "first level" references will almost inevitably be positive. To probe a little deeper, ask these references who else knows the subject; in this way you can develop a list of "second level" references more likely to present an objective view of the subject.


3. Use the Reflective Listening style. Mirror the interviewee's comments back at him or her by paraphrasing what he's said. Experts say this increases the interviewee's confidence that he's saying the right thing or is on the right track, relaxes him, and encourages him to open up. 
4. Work to build rapport with the interviewee. Try to encourage the interviewee to feel "We are alike, you can tell me anything, it's okay." Probe to find areas of similarity, such as common hobbies, sports, activities, or best of all, acquaintances, then play up these points of commonality. And it goes without saying: maintain courteousness at all times. 
5. Be aware of eye movements indicating the possibility of deception, such as: 
• avoidance of eye contact 
• shifty eye movements 
• wrinkling the brow and staring hard and unblinkingly 
• inappropriate eye movement. For example, a person's usual eye movement when trying to recall something is to look upward and to the left; if instead, he looks to the right (the direction most people look when attempting to visualize or imagine) this could mean he's trying to "imagine" what his answer should be. 
And body language indications of possible deception: 
• tremor or other sudden change in voice 
• licking lips 
• frequent throat clearing 
• running tongue over teeth or lips 
• change in speed of diction, i.e., shift to rapid or slow speech 
• perspiring or trembling 
• leaning forward 
• shifting feet or crossing and uncrossing legs 
• inappropriate familiarity, such as backslapping or touching your hand or shoulder 
• any other signs of unusual nervousness 
For more information on body language, go to www.selfgrowth.com/articles/kyle.html. 
6. When trying to elicit information by telephone (e.g., as part of a skip trace investigation), remember the power of the phrase, "I wonder if you could help me..." Use it frequently. And always ask the interviewee for referrals to others who might be able to supply more information. 
7. Another good link which provides tips on hiring, interviewing and selection: www.ashleygrp.com/hiringtips 

Here are a few tricks for those whose interviewing centers on background checks and people-locates, as opposed to reference checking. 

1. When talking with friends, relatives or neighbors, a commonly-used trick is to disqualify your subject after the phone interview. You may not want the individual you've spoken to to immediately call your subject and report the interview. To disqualify your subject (as it's called), lead the interviewee to think the interview was a mistake. For example, "I understand Joe was born in Cincinnati..." (though you know he was born in Seattle). To which the interviewee may reply, "Oh, no, Joe was born in Seattle." This then gives you the opportunity to disqualify your subject with, "I'm sorry, we've been talking about someone else. I'm sorry to have bothered you. Good-bye." 
2. Set up an error for the interviewee to correct. People love to correct other people's mistakes. So say something like, "Joe, I understand, was a Yale graduate." The interviewee may then correct you with something like, "Joe? He barely made it through high school." 
3. Use silences to your advantage. Talk little, listen a lot. If your interviewee falters, don't ask another question right away. Let the silence lengthen uncomfortably. He will often start talking again just to end the silence.