Chapter 17 Improving Questioning
There is a drill which can work wonders at improving your ability to ask leading and non-leading questions.
It will teach you the difference between them.
It will teach you to be comfortable with the difference.
To improve non-leading technique, you need two colleagues, three pieces of paper and three pens.
We'll call them Jack and Jill.
Jill draws a simple shape which you do not see.
With your pen in hand, you ask questions non-leading questions of Jill to describe her drawing.
You now draw what you hear described.
And Jack does the same. He draws what he hears described by your questions of Jill.
Both of you, separately, without helping each other must draw EXACTLY THE SAME SHAPE AS JILL: same angles, same size, same scale.
Exactly the same.
Your questions must be precise to elicit the precise location of the various lines in the shape.
What shape have you drawn?
A boat
From bow to stern, how long it?
6cm
Where on the paper is it, in the middle, on the right, towards the top, exactly where?
It's centre is in the centre of the paper.
Has it sails or funnels?
Funnels
How many funnels?
Two
How many decks?
Two
Is there smoke rising from the funnels?
Yes
From both?
Yes
And so on
At the end of the exercise, compare drawings. Check your drawing with Jill. Check Jack's drawing with Jill.
The more exactly your drawing matches hers, the more accurate and focused your questioning has been.
And because you have not known what her shape was, your questions will naturally have been non-leading.
And here's the clever bit. The more exactly Jack's drawing matches Jill's, the more effective your questions have been to the ear of Jack in creating in his mind exactly what is in Jill’s, so that he can now share Jill's mind.
In other words, you will get some idea of whether from your questions a tribunal could have formed the SAME MENTAL PICTURE, in the same dimensions, of exactly the same shape, as is on Jill’s paper, also as you have formed in your mind, and as has been formed in the mind of Jack.
This exercise allows you to measure how effective your questioning is because if Jack’s drawing is way off from Jill’s, and from yours, then your questions have created a lousy picture in his mind of what Jill is trying to say, and you can see he has ended up seeing things differently from you and from Jill.
At the end of direct examination, everyone’s mental picture should be the same as that of the witness - get it?
Now for leading questions.
To improve leading technique, you need Jack and Jill, two pieces of paper and two pens.
Jack draws a shape unseen by Jill.
You look at Jack's drawing and you ask leading questions of him.
You know exactly the image you wish to create in Jill’s mind.
Through the leading questions you describe the shape.
Jill listens to the description you put to Jack.
If your leading questions are unfocused or clumsy, Jack will disagree with what you put to him, just as a real witness would under cross-examination.
You want Jack always to answer yes. This is the key to leading question technique.
But you want to be so methodical and focused in the questions that they basically amount to instructions to Jill about how to draw exactly the same shape.
The shape is a boat, that's right isn't it?
Yes
It has 2 funnels?
Yes
Each funnel produces smoke?
Yes
The boat has one deck?
Yes
The bow of the boat is centred one inch from the left edge?
Yes
The rear of the boat is centred two inches from the right edge?
Yes
And so on.
At the end of the exercise, look at Jill's drawing.
It is a representation of the picture you have created in Jill's mind.
Once again, you can measure the effectiveness of your questioning as you now have some idea of the sort of picture you have created in a tribunal's mind.
To be good any good at questioning, you want Jill to have drawn pretty much exactly what is on Jack’s paper.
These exercises work.
Very well.
Try them.
Often.
The learning curve is exponential.