---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: overshooting”—an interrogation technique…"
description: "\"“overshooting”—an interrogation technique invented by the early Roman authorities to coax confessions from criminals they suspected were lying. The met..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d30/anonymous-1_quote_overshooting-an-interrogation-technique_1546052.jpg"
---

#  overshooting”—an interrogation technique invented by the…

![“overshooting”—an interrogation technique invented by the early Roman authorities to coax confessions from criminals they suspected were lying. The method was deceptively simple: Assert the information you want confessed. Then allege something far worse.” quote by Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d30/anonymous-1_quote_overshooting-an-interrogation-technique_1546052.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d30/anonymous-1_quote_overshooting-an-interrogation-technique_1546052.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d30/anonymous-1_quote_overshooting-an-interrogation-technique_1546052.jpg)

> ““overshooting”—an interrogation technique invented by the early Roman authorities to coax confessions from criminals they suspected were lying. The method was deceptively simple: Assert the information you want confessed. Then allege something far worse.””

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

A coercive method where investigators claim a harsher scenario to force a confession of a lesser truth.

**In simple terms:** Force confession by threatening worse outcome.

Key Takeaway

Use caution when faced with extreme claims.

Themes

coercion truth power dynamics

Mood

anious skeptical

Type

ethical historical

When to use this quote

- law enforcement
- legal negotiations
- personal disputes
- conflict resolution

Key Concepts

psychology interrogation tactics authority

Questions to Reflect On

- Is the threat justified?
- How to verify truth without intimidation?

A Different Perspective

May produce false admissions; ethical concerns.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Interrogation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/interrogation/) [Interrogation Technique](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/interrogation-technique-1687794/) [Lying Method](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lying-method-5768751/) [Overshooting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/overshooting-4322020/) [Overshooting Interrogation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/overshooting-interrogation-5768750/)

## Related quotes

> [“The worst of all was to be faced with the interrogation technique of Thirty Seconds. The interrogator would say something and you had to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-m-forester/the-worst-of-all-was-to-be-faced-with-the-interrogation-technique-of/)

[H.M. Forester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-m-forester/)

> [Growing up in the digital age of filmmaking, I'm as guilty as anyone of overshooting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-heineman/growing-up-in-the-digital-age-of-filmmaking-i-m-as-guilty-as-anyone/)

[Matthew Heineman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-heineman/)

> [I like to move quickly. I don't like the nature of television of just sitting around and overshooting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jake-m-johnson/i-like-to-move-quickly-i-don-t-like-the-nature-of-television-of-just/)

[Jake M. Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jake-m-johnson/)

> [Her round, mascara-streaked face looked back at him out of the rear window. He forced a grin and a wave before lighting another cigarette,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/her-round-mascara-streaked-face-looked-back-at-him-out-of-the-rear/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Many of Bush's defenders have praised him for keeping the country safe since Sept. 11, 2001. He deserves that praise, and I'm perfectly happy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/many-of-bush-s-defenders-have-praised-him-for-keeping-the-country/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [ \[In geology,\] As in history, the material in hand remains silent if no questions are asked. The nature of these questions depends on the… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/in-geology-as-in-history-the-material-in-hand-remains-silent-if-no/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> ['truth or dare' should be renamed interrogation and Humiliation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/truth-or-dare-should-be-renamed-interrogation-and-humiliation/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [The CIA has acknowledged that it has detained about 100 terrorists since 9/11, and about a third of them have been subjected to what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-o-brennan/the-cia-has-acknowledged-that-it-has-detained-about-100-terrorists/)

[John O. Brennan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-o-brennan/)

> [The novelist's intuition for the sacred differs from the translator's interrogation of the sacred.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cynthia-ozick/the-novelist-s-intuition-for-the-sacred-differs-from-the-translator-s/)

[Cynthia Ozick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cynthia-ozick/)

> [I met a woman in Albuquerque and she came and hung out with me in the trailer. It was really just more to kind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlize-theron/i-met-a-woman-in-albuquerque-and-she-came-and-hung-out-with-me-in-the/)

[Charlize Theron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlize-theron/)

> [The greatest reward of this constant interrogation, confrontation with the brutality of my country, is that it has freed me from hosts and myths.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ta-nehisi-coates/the-greatest-reward-of-this-constant-interrogation-confrontation-with/)

[Ta-Nehisi Coates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ta-nehisi-coates/)

> [I have never worked on interrogation; I have never seen an interrogation, and I have only a passing knowledge of the literature on interrogation.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/i-have-never-worked-on-interrogation-i-have-never-seen-an/)

[Martin Seligman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/)

> [“Occupational Safety &amp; Health Administration (OSHA) is largely an interrogation agency for whistle-blowers that extracts their full range of knowledge without upholding their legal rights.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/occupational-safety-health-administration-osha-is-largely-an/)

[Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/)

> [“But they argued as lawyers do, they twisted every answer I gave until it sounded like the opposite meaning, and I became so confused…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-j-parris/but-they-argued-as-lawyers-do-they-twisted-every-answer-i-gave-until/)

[S.J. Parris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-j-parris/)

> [A place has almost the shyness of a person, with strangers; and its secret is not to be surprised by a too direct interrogation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-symons/a-place-has-almost-the-shyness-of-a-person-with-strangers-and-its/)

[Arthur Symons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-symons/)

## More by Anonymous

> [And a tear rolled down her cheek, as she said goodbye; because she's walking away, and she's never looking back](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/and-a-tear-rolled-down-her-cheek-as-she-said-goodbye-because-she-s/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [You'll seldom experience regret for anything that you've done. It is what you haven't done that will torment you. The message, therefore, is clear.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-ll-seldom-experience-regret-for-anything-that-you-ve-done-it-is/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Scrabble - The game is available in Braille. That’s a nice fact. This makes me feel better about humanity for some reason. I can’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/scrabble-the-game-is-available-in-braille-that-s-a-nice-fact-this/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Everyone needs someone to love, and I choose you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/everyone-needs-someone-to-love-and-i-choose-you/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“THIS tale of my sore-troubled life I write,    To thank the God of nature, who conveyed    My soul to me, and with such care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-tale-of-my-sore-troubled-life-i-write-to-thank-the-god-of-nature/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Put on my J's and dance the whole night away Im naughty by nature like Im hip-hop hooray With my hands in the sky,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/put-on-my-j-s-and-dance-the-whole-night-away-im-naughty-by-nature/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Me.. I have been through a lot, but I still manage to have a smile on my face. Im not worried about the past…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/me-i-have-been-through-a-lot-but-i-still-manage-to-have-a-smile-on-my/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Distance is a test of love. many will fail for those who can't withstand it, but for those who can, theres only one answer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/distance-is-a-test-of-love-many-will-fail-for-those-who-can-t/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Im sorry I ever tried...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/im-sorry-i-ever-tried/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Being betrayed by the one you love is the worst feeling in the world...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/being-betrayed-by-the-one-you-love-is-the-worst-feeling-in-the-world/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Let children support their parents or be imprisoned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/let-children-support-their-parents-or-be-imprisoned/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [The only person I've ever purposely caused pain here is myself...By simply sharing, caring too much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-only-person-i-ve-ever-purposely-caused-pain-here-is-myself-by/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“Start a business, not a startup”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/start-a-business-not-a-startup/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [The truth is, of course, that the curtness of the Ten Commandments is an evidence, not of the gloom and narrowness of a religion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-truth-is-of-course-that-the-curtness-of-the-ten-commandments-is/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

[Explore all 162,899 Anonymous quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

## More Interrogation quotes

> [A place has almost the shyness of a person, with strangers; and its secret is not to be surprised by a too direct interrogation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-symons/a-place-has-almost-the-shyness-of-a-person-with-strangers-and-its/)

[Arthur Symons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-symons/)

> [“But they argued as lawyers do, they twisted every answer I gave until it sounded like the opposite meaning, and I became so confused…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-j-parris/but-they-argued-as-lawyers-do-they-twisted-every-answer-i-gave-until/)

[S.J. Parris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-j-parris/)

> [“Occupational Safety &amp; Health Administration (OSHA) is largely an interrogation agency for whistle-blowers that extracts their full range of knowledge without upholding their legal rights.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/occupational-safety-health-administration-osha-is-largely-an/)

[Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/)

> [ \[In geology,\] As in history, the material in hand remains silent if no questions are asked. The nature of these questions depends on the… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/in-geology-as-in-history-the-material-in-hand-remains-silent-if-no/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [I have never worked on interrogation; I have never seen an interrogation, and I have only a passing knowledge of the literature on interrogation.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/i-have-never-worked-on-interrogation-i-have-never-seen-an/)

[Martin Seligman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/)

> [The greatest reward of this constant interrogation, confrontation with the brutality of my country, is that it has freed me from hosts and myths.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ta-nehisi-coates/the-greatest-reward-of-this-constant-interrogation-confrontation-with/)

[Ta-Nehisi Coates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ta-nehisi-coates/)

> [I met a woman in Albuquerque and she came and hung out with me in the trailer. It was really just more to kind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlize-theron/i-met-a-woman-in-albuquerque-and-she-came-and-hung-out-with-me-in-the/)

[Charlize Theron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlize-theron/)

> [The novelist's intuition for the sacred differs from the translator's interrogation of the sacred.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cynthia-ozick/the-novelist-s-intuition-for-the-sacred-differs-from-the-translator-s/)

[Cynthia Ozick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cynthia-ozick/)

> [The CIA has acknowledged that it has detained about 100 terrorists since 9/11, and about a third of them have been subjected to what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-o-brennan/the-cia-has-acknowledged-that-it-has-detained-about-100-terrorists/)

[John O. Brennan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-o-brennan/)

> [“Lean in, invade that foot and a half that is all theirs, their own space. Lean back when you get what you want. It’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-connelly/lean-in-invade-that-foot-and-a-half-that-is-all-theirs-their-own/)

[Michael Connelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-connelly/)

> [Maugham then offers the greatest advice anyone could give to a young author: "At the end of an interrogation sentence, place a question mark.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-allen/maugham-then-offers-the-greatest-advice-anyone-could-give-to-a-young/)

[Woody Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-allen/)

> [You've gotta understand - when you interview someone, it's not an interrogation. It's not the Nuremberg Trials.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-rivers/you-ve-gotta-understand-when-you-interview-someone-it-s-not-an/)

[Joan Rivers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-rivers/)

> [The hon. gentleman had better spare his interrogations if they are as senseless as that one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-tupper/the-hon-gentleman-had-better-spare-his-interrogations-if-they-are-as/)

[Charles Tupper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-tupper/)

> [Photography is only intuition, a perpetual interrogation - everything except a stage set.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-cartier-bresson/photography-is-only-intuition-a-perpetual-interrogation-everything/)

[Henri Cartier-Bresson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-cartier-bresson/)

> [There is ...a huge tacit conspiracy between the U.S. government, its agencies and its multinational corporations, on the one hand, and local business and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-s-herman/there-is-a-huge-tacit-conspiracy-between-the-u-s-government-its/)

[Edward S. Herman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-s-herman/)

[Browse all 162 Interrogation quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/interrogation/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“overshooting”—an interrogation technique invented by the early Roman authorities to coax confessions from criminals they suspected were lying. The method was deceptively simple: Assert the information you want confessed. Then allege something far worse.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Anonymous"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/overshooting-an-interrogation-technique-invented-by-the-early-roman/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Interrogation"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/overshooting-an-interrogation-technique-invented-by-the-early-roman/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d30/anonymous-1_quote_overshooting-an-interrogation-technique_1546052.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d30/anonymous-1_quote_overshooting-an-interrogation-technique_1546052.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d30/anonymous-1_quote_overshooting-an-interrogation-technique_1546052.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“overshooting”—an interrogation technique invented by the early Roman authorities to coax confessions from…” — Anonymous",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Anonymous",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“overshooting”—an interrogation technique invented by the...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/overshooting-an-interrogation-technique-invented-by-the-early-roman/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/overshooting-an-interrogation-technique-invented-by-the-early-roman/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
