Police perspectives on interviewing older adult victims and witnesses: Preliminary findings and call for future research

ABSTRACT As the proportion of older adults (OAs) in the population continues to increase, so too will the frequency of police interactions with OAs and the need to gather accurate and detailed accounts from them. Yet, research on police information-gathering with OAs remains relatively scarce. This qualitative study begins to address this gap. We conducted semi-structured interviews with an experienced Canadian police sample (N = 10) regarding their involvement with, and perspectives on, interviewing OA victims and witnesses. Participants reported heterogeneous interactions with OAs, identified barriers that OAs face (e.g., shame), and affirmed the unavailability of training and official guidance on information-gathering with OAs. Our findings highlight existing practical challenges and future research avenues.