Problem
For this project, you will do a mock interview to demonstrate your skills. You will record a video of yourself interviewing a person who is role-playing a domestic violence victim. You can choose to either:
A. Roleplay that you are a police officer responding to a domestic violence call. You only need to video record the portion where you talk to the domestic violence victim. Your interview should include all of the elements that we discussed in the training for police officers.
B. Roleplay that you are a health care provider (doctor, nurse, medical assistant, etc.) conducting a domestic violence screen OR responding to disclosed domestic violence. Your interview should demonstrate all of the elements that we discussed in the training for primary care doctors.
In conducting these interviews, I am looking to make sure that you DON'T do anything problematic. Examples of problematic behavior:
A. Sharing your own story of abuse (this can be unprofessional)
B. Being extremely directive/bossy, "You need to leave," "Go to a women's shelter tonight."
C. Promising the victim safety "I will keep you safe," "We will keep you safe," "It's going to be OK now." You can't keep her safe. She really is in danger, it is not in her head. She could die from this phone call/visit from the police. You need to take that seriously.
D. Being condescending, "You gotta stand up for yourself!" "I know you're scared, but it's time to be brave," "I know you can do it if you really work hard," "why do you let him treat you this way?"
E. Providing a lot of irrelevant information, like details on abuse statistics in the U.S.
F. Using religious language, like "You need to trust God" or "It's time to turn your life over to Jesus." These would be inappropriate statements for a police officer or a health care provider to make to a patient/victim.
G. Not reading/following the victim. If the victim says something like, "this is the last straw, I'm ready to leave right now," then you need to match them where they are--don't reply with "Take your time, slow down, think this through." Reply with, "Great! How can I help?" If the victim says, "he's a good guy, you don't understand him," don't reply by arguing with the victim.
When I ask you to interview someone pretending to be a victim of domestic violence, it can seem like I am making light of domestic violence. When I use the phrase "mock interview" or "role play," that doesn't mean that these interviews are a game or funny. Mock interviews are a core pedagogical practice in health care, psychology, social work, business, and other settings. Mock interviews give students the chance to show their expertise in working with a real person. I want you to leave this class able to talk with a real victim of domestic violence without saying things that make the situation worse. The only way for me to assess whether you know how to do that is by observing you conduct a mock interview.