The VIEW Questionnaire
The VIEW Questionnaire is a refinement of the SCAN technique.
VIEW stands for Verbal Enquiry Effective Witness.
The questionnaire is a series of open questions which invite the subject to give their own explanation, in their own words.
Theoretical basis
The questionnaire is based upon a universal characteristic of the human psyche, it is difficult to lie and it is impossible to lie twice. In order to give the subject every opportunity to be truthful and at the same time confirm their answers, certain questions are subtle duplications. Different formulations of the same question will elicit different answers which can then be compared.
This does not mean that a subject will tell you everything. The information they give will be truthful, but they will omit pertinent facts. A deceptive person will give a ”truthful but incomplete statement”.
When reading an open statement, the reader should not ask whether the subject is being truthful or deceptive, but rather: "Is it possible that the subject is being truthful but still did it?”
Variations of the VIEW Questionnaire have been designed for different applications. We concentrate on those appropriate to employment investigations but we are also able to assist in Criminal Investigations (for example into murder, robbery, rape, and sexual abuse (including child abuse),insurance fraud (fabrication and inflated claims), accident compensation fraud, and immigration fraud. Questionnaires have been designed for a range of subjects: suspect, witness, victim, and informant.
The VIEW Questionnaire for pre-employment or promotion purposes
The ability to tell the difference between deceptive and truthful information is a crucial component of employment screening. We have developed a VIEW Questionnaire specifically for use in this context. PVL’s questionnaire, when used in conjunction with our other services provides additional assurances about the honesty and probity of the staff you are considering employing or promoting.
Note: in Israel, after its intelligence agency began using the VIEW questionnaire, the vetting failure rate went from 2.5% to 13%.