Power Dynamics in Police Interrogations: A Critical Discourse Analysis of Language and Control

Vollständiger Abstract

Worum geht es in dieser Arbeit?

How is language used by law enforcement? Critical Discourse Analysis is employed in this paper to investigate the high-stress situation of police interrogations and how language is used to establish power relations. In Addition, discourse does not just reflect the organisation of society but also forms new rules for organised power. Deconstruction of the police' repertoire of language: commanding expressions, entrapment questions and rephrasing are all forms of silent modification. Research shows that interrogation is not unilateral; although agents have the power of the institution, detainees are also learning to resist and negotiate, and at the end of the interrogation, the power relations are relatively uneven. Finally, this study has shown how speech is used to shape the reality inside the agency, and therefore, Critical Discourse Analysis facilitates better understanding of the typical unequal power relations between law enforcement and the people they investigate.