Assessing the value of structured protocols for forensic interviews of alleged child abuse victims

Child Abuse and Neglect

Volumn 24, Issue 6, 2000, Pages 733-752

  Orbach, Yael ^a   Hershkowitz, Irit ^b   Lamb, Michael E ^a   Sternberg, Kathleen J ^a   Esplin, Phillip W ^c   Horowitz, Dvora ^d  

^a EUNICE KENNEDY SHRIVER NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF CHILD HEALTH AND HUMAN DEVELOPMENT   (United States)

^b UNIVERSITY OF HAIFA   (Israel)

^c Private Practice   (United States)

^d DIVISION FOR INTELLECTUAL AND DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES   (Israel)

Author keywords

Child witnesses; Forensic interviews; Interview processes; Open ended questions; Sexual abuse

Indexed keywords

ADOLESCENT; ARTICLE; CHILD; CHILD ABUSE; CLINICAL PROTOCOL; FEMALE; HUMAN; INTERVIEW; MAJOR CLINICAL STUDY; MALE; TRAINING; VICTIM;

ADOLESCENT; CHILD; CHILD ABUSE, SEXUAL; CHILD, PRESCHOOL; FEMALE; FORENSIC MEDICINE; HUMANS; INTERVIEWS; ISRAEL; MALE;

EID: 0034014504     PISSN: 01452134     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1016/S0145-2134(00)00137-X     Document Type: Article

References (101)

1. Aldridge J., Cameron S. Interviewing child witnesses Questioning strategies and the effectiveness of training . Applied Developmental Science. 3:1999;136-147.
2. American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children. (1990). Guidelines for psychosocial evaluation of suspected sexual abuse in young children. Chicago, IL: Author.
3. Bauer P.J., Fivush R. Constructing event representations Building on a foundation of variation and enabling relations . Cognitive Development. 7:1992;381-401.
4. Bell, G. E. (1984). Developmental differences in preschoolers' comprehension of wh- questions. Dissertation Abstracts International, 45(6-A), 163.
5. Bjorklund, B., Douglas, R., Park, C., Nelson., L., Sanders., L., Gache, J., Cassell, W., & Bjorklund, D. (1997). When does misleading questioning cause children to change their minds as well as their answers? Paper presented at the Society for Research in Child Development, Washington, DC.
6. Bruck M., Ceci S. Amicus Brief for the case of State of New Jersey v. Michaels presented by Committee of Concerned Social Scientists. Psychology, Public Policy, and The Law. 1:1995;272-322.
7. Bruck M., Ceci S.J. Issues in the scientific validation of interviews with young children. Monographs of the Society for Research in Child Development. 61:(4-5):1996;204-214.
8. Bull R. Obtaining evidence expertly The reliability of interviews with child witnesses . Expert Evidence. 1:1992;5-12.
9. Bull, R. (1995). Innovative techniques for the questioning of child witnesses, especially those who are young and those with learning disability. In M. S. Zaragoza, J. R. Graham, G. C. N. Hall, R. Hirschman, & Y. S. Ben-Porath (Eds.), Memory and testimony in the child witness (Vol. 1, pp. 179-194). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
10. Carter C.A., Bottoms B.L., Levine M. Linguistic and socioemotional influences on the accuracy of children's reports. Law & Human Behavior. 20:1996;335-358.
11. Cassel W.S., Bjorklund D.F. Developmental patterns of eyewitness memory and suggestibility An ecologically based short-term longitudinal study . Law & Human Behavior. 19:1995;507-532.
12. Cassel W.S., Roebers C.E.M., Bjorklund D.F. Developmental patterns of eyewitness responses to repeated and increasingly suggestive questions. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology. 61:1996;116-133.
13. Ceci S.J., Bruck M. Jeopardy in the courtroom A scientific analysis of children's testimony . 1995;American Psychological Association, Washington, DC.
14. Ceci S.J., Huffman M.L.C. How suggestible are preschool children? Cognitive and social factors. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry. 36:1997;948-958.
15. Ceci S.J., Huffman M.L.C., Smith E., Loftus E.F. Repeatedly thinking about a non-event Source misattributions among preschoolers . Pezdek K., Banks W.P. The recovered memory/false memory debate. 1996;225-244 Academic Press, San Diego, CA.
16. Ceci S.J., Leichtman M.D., Bruck M. The suggestibility of children's eyewitness reports Methodological issues . Weinert F.E., Schneider W. Memory performance and competencies Issues in growth and development . 1995;323-347 Erlbaum, Mahwah, NJ.
17. Cheung K.M. Developing the interview protocol for video-recorded child sexual abuse investigations A training experience with police officers, social workers, and clinical psychologists in Hong Kong . Child Abuse & Neglect. 21:1997;273-284.
18. Craig R.A., Sheibe R., Kircher J., Raskin D.C., Dodd D. Effects of interviewer questions on children's statements of sexual abuse. Applied Developmental Science. 3:1999;77-85.
19. Dale P.S., Loftus E.F., Rathbun L. The influence of the form of the question on the eyewitness testimony of preschool children. Journal of Psycholinguistic Research. 7:1978;269-277.
20. Davidson D., Hoe S. Children's recall and recognition memory for typical and atypical actions in script-based stories. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology. 55:1993;104-126.
21. Davies G., Wilson C. Implementation of the Memorandum An overview . Westcott H., Jones J. Perspectives on the memorandum Policy, practice and research in investigative interviewing . 1997;1-12 Arena Publishers, Aldershot, UK.
22. Dent H.R., Stephenson G.M. An experimental study of the effectiveness of different techniques of questioning child witnesses. British Journal of Social & Clinical Psychology. 18:1979;41-51.
23. Dietze P.M., Thomson D.M. Mental reinstatement of context A technique for interviewing child witnesses . Applied Cognitive Psychology. 7:1993;97-108.
24. Fisher R.P., Geiselman R.E. Memory-enhancing techniques for investigative interviewing The cognitive interview . 1992;Charles C Thomas, Springfield, IL.
25. Fivush, R., & Shukat, J. R. (1995). Content, consistency, and coherence of early autobiographical recall. In M. S. Zaragoza, J. R. Graham, G. C. N. Hall, R. Hirschman, & Y. S. Ben-Porath (Eds.), Memory and testimony in the child witness (Vol. 1, pp. 5-23). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
26. Flin R., Boon J., Knox A., Bull R. The effects of a five-month delay on children's and adults' eyewitness memory. British Journal of Psychology. 83:1992;323-336.
27. Gee S., Pipe M.E. Helping children to remember The influence of object cues on children's accounts of a real event . Developmental Psychology. 31:1995;746-758.
28. Geiselman R.E. Improving eyewitness memory through mental reinstatement of context. Davies G.M., Thomson D.M. Memory in context Context in memory . 1988;245-266 Wiley, Chichester, UK.
29. Geiselman R.E., Fisher R.P., Firstenberg I., Hutton L.A., Sullivan S.J., Avetissian I.V., Prosk A.L. Enhancement of eyewitness memory An empirical evaluation of the cognitive interview . Journal of Police Sciences and Administration. 12:1984;74-80.
30. Geiselman R.E., Padilla J. Cognitive interviewing with child witnesses. Journal of Police Science & Administration. 16:1988;236-242.
31. Geiselman R.E., Saywitz K.J., Bornstein G.K. Effects of cognitive questioning techniques on children's recall performance. Goodman G.S., Bottoms B.L. Child victims, child witnesses Understanding and improving testimony . 1993;71-93 Guilford Press, New York.
32. Goodman G.S., Aman C. Children's use of anatomically detailed dolls to recount an event. Child Development. 61:1990;1859-1871.
33. Hershkowitz I., Lamb M.E., Sternberg K.J., Esplin P.W. The relationships among interviewer utterance type, CBCA scores, and the richness of children's responses. Legal and Criminological Psychology. 2:1997;169-176.
34. Hershkowitz I., Orbach Y., Lamb M.E., Sternberg K.J., Horowitz D., Hovav M. Visiting the scene of the crime Effects on children's recall of alleged abuse . Legal and Criminological Psychology. 3:1998;195-207.
35. Hudson J.A., Fivush R., Kuebli J. Scripts and episodes The development of event memory. Special issue: Memory in everyday settings . Applied Cognitive Psychology. 6:1992;483-505.
36. Hughes M., Grieve R. On asking children bizarre questions. First Language. 1:1980;149-160.
37. Hutcheson G.D., Baxter J.S., Telfer K., Warden D. Child witness statement quality Question type and errors of omission . Law & Human Behavior. 19:1995;631-648.
38. Jones D. Interviewing the sexually abused child Investigation of suspected abuse . 1992;Gaskell, London.
39. Kobasigawa A. Utilization of retrieval cues by children in recall. Child Development. 45:1974;127-134.
40. Lamb M.E., Hershkowitz I., Sternberg K.J., Esplin P.W., Hovav M., Manor T., Yudilevitch L. Effects of investigative utterance types on Israeli children's responses. International Journal of Behavioral Development. 19:1996;627-637.
41. Lamb M.E., Sternberg K.J., Esplin P.W. Making children into competent witnesses Reactions to the amicus brief in re Michaels . Psychology, Public Policy, & Law. 1:1995;438-449.
42. Lamb M.E., Sternberg K.J., Esplin P.W. Conducting investigative interviews of alleged sexual abuse victims. Child Abuse & Neglect. 22:1998;813-823.
43. Lamb M.E., Sternberg K.J., Orbach Y., Hershkowitz I., Esplin P.W. Forensic interviews of children. Bull R., Memon A. The psychology of interviewing A handbook . 1999;253-278 Wiley, New York.
44. Leichtman M.D., Ceci S.J. The effects of stereotypes and suggestions on preschoolers' reports. Developmental Psychology. 31:1995;568-578.
45. Lyon T.D., Saywitz K.J. Maltreated children's competence to take the oath. Applied Developmental Science. 3:1999;16-27.
46. Malpass R.S. Enhancing eyewitness memory. Sporer S.L., Malpass R.S. Psychological issues in eyewitness identification. 1996;177-204 Erlbaum, Mahwah, NJ.
47. McCauley M.R., Fisher R.P. Facilitating children's eyewitness recall with the revised cognitive interview. Journal of Applied Psychology. 80:1995;510-516.
48. Memon A., Bull R., Smith M. Improving the quality of police interviews Can training in the use of cognitive techniques help? Policing and Society. 5:1995;53-68.
49. Memon A., Cronin O., Eaves R., Bull R. The cognitive interview and child witnesses. Issues in Criminological and Legal Psychology. 20:1993;3-9.
50. Memon A., Holley A., Wark L., Bull R., Koehnken G. Reducing suggestibility in child witness interviews. Applied Cognitive Psychology. 10:1996;503-518.
51. Memon A., Wark L., Bull R., Koehnken G. Isolating the effects of the cognitive interview techniques. British Journal of Psychology. 88:1997;170-197.
52. Memorandum of Good Practice. (1992). London: Her Majesty's Stationary Office.
53. Michaels S. "Sharing time:" Children's narrative styles and differential access to literacy. Language in Society. 10:1981;423-442.
54. Milne R., Bull R. Investigative interviewing Psychology and practice . 1999;Wiley, Chichester, UK.
55. Moston S. The suggestibility of children in interview studies. First Language. 7:1987;67-78.
56. Nelson K. Event knowledge and cognitive development. Nelson K. Event knowledge. 1986;231-247 Erlbaum, Hillsdale, NJ.
57. Nelson K., Gruendel J. Children's scripts. Nelson K. Event knowledge Structure and function in development . 1986;21-46 Erlbaum, Hillsdale, NJ.
58. Newcombe P.A., Seigal M. Where to look first for the suggestibility in young children. Cognition. 59:1996;337-356.
59. Oates K., Shrimpton S. Children's memories for stressful and non-stressful events. Medicine, Science and Law. 31:1991;4-10.
60. O'Callaghan G., D'Arcy H. Use of props in questioning preschool witnesses. Australian Journal of Psychology. 41:1989;187-195.
61. Orbach Y., Hershkowitz I., Lamb M.E., Sternberg K.J., Horowitz D. Interviewing at the scene of a crime Effects on children's recall of alleged abuse . Legal and Criminological Psychology. 5:2000;135-147.
62. Orbach Y., Lamb M.E. Assessing the accuracy of a child's account of sexual abuse A case study . Child Abuse & Neglect. 23:1999;91-98.
63. Peterson C., Bell M. Children's memory for traumatic injury. Child Development. 67:1996;3045-3070.
64. Peterson C., Biggs M. Interviewing children about trauma Problems with "specific" questions . Journal of Traumatic Stress. 10:1997;279-290.
65. Peterson C., Dowden C., Tobin J. Interviewing preschoolers Comparison of Yes/No and Wh-questions . Law and Human Behavior. 23:1999;539-555.
66. Pipe M.E., Gee S., Wilson C. Cues, props and context Do they facilitate children's events reports? Goodman G.S., Bottoms B.L. Child victims, child witnesses. 1993;25-45 Guilford Press, New York.
67. Pipe M.E., Wilson J.C. Cues and secrets Influences on children's event reports . Developmental Psychology. 30:1994;515-525.
68. Plotnikoff J., Woolfson R. Preparing young witnesses for court A handbook for child witness supporters . 1998;National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children, London.
69. Poole D.A., Lamb M.E. Investigative interviews of children A guide for helping professionals . 1998;American Psychological Association, Washington, DC.
70. Poole D.A., Lindsay D.S. Assessing the accuracy of children's reports Lessons from the investigation of child sexual abuse . Applied & Preventive Psychology. 7:1998;1-26.
71. Poole, D. A., & Lindsay, D. S. (in press). Children's suggestibility. In J. A. Quas, M. L. Eisen, & G. S. Goodman (Eds.), Memory and suggestibility in the forensic interview. Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.
72. Poole D.A., White L.T. Two years later Effect of question repetition and retention interval on the eyewitness testimony of children and adults . Developmental Psychology. 29:1993;844-853.
73. Powell M.B., Thomson D.M. Children's eyewitness-memory research Implications for practice . Families in Society. 75:1994;204-216.
74. Price D.W., Goodman G.S. Visiting the wizard Children's memory for a recurring event . Child Development. 61:1990;664-680.
75. Salmon K., Bidrose S., Pipe M.E. Providing props to facilitate children's reports A comparison of toys and real items . Journal of Experimental Child Psychology. 60:1995;174-194.
76. Salmon K., Pipe M.E. Props and children's event reports The impact of a 1-year delay . Journal of Experimental Child Psychology. 65:1997;261-292.
77. Saywitz K., Geiselman R.E. Interviewing the child witness Maximizing completeness and minimizing error . Lynn S.J., McConkey K.M. Truth in memory. 1998;190-223 Guilford Press, New York.
78. Saywitz K.J., Goodman G.S. Interviewing children in and out of court Current research and practice implications . Briere J., Berliner L., Bulkley J.A., Jenny C., Reid T. The APSAC handbook on child maltreatment. 1996;297-318 Sage, Thousand Oaks, CA.
79. Saywitz K.J., Goodman G.S., Nicholas E., Moan S.F. Children's memories of a physical examination involving genital touch Implications for reports of child sexual abuse . Journal of Consulting & Clinical Psychology. 59:1991;682-691.
80. Saywitz K.J., Nathanson R. Children's testimony and their perceptions of stress in and out of the courtroom. Child Abuse & Neglect. 17:1993;613-622.
81. Saywitz K.J., Snyder L. Improving children's testimony with preparation. Goodman G.S., Bottoms B.L. Child victims, child witnesses Understanding and improving testimony . 1993;117-146 Guilford Press, New York.
82. Saywitz K.J., Snyder L. Narrative elaboration Test of a new procedure for interviewing children . Journal of Consulting & Clinical Psychology. 64:1996;1347-1357.
83. Saywitz K.J., Snyder L., Lamphear V. Helping children tell what happened A follow-up study of the narrative elaboration procedure . Child Maltreatment. 1:1996;200-212.
84. Saywitz K.J., Snyder L., Nathanson R. Facilitating the communicative competence of the child witness. Applied Developmental Science. 3:1999;58-68.
85. Snyder L.S., Lindstedt D.E. Children's courtroom narratives Competence, credibility, and the communicative contract . Topics in Language Disorders. 15:1995;16-29.
86. Sternberg, K. J., Lamb, M. E., Esplin, P. W., Orbach, Y., & Hershkowitz, I. (in press). Using a scripted protocol to improve the quality of investigative interviews. In J. Quas, M. Eisen, & G. Goodman (Eds.), Memory and suggestibility in the forensic interview. Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.
87. Sternberg K.J., Lamb M.E., Hershkowitz I., Esplin P.W., Redlich A., Sunshine N. The relation between investigative utterance types and the informativeness of child witnesses. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology. 17:1996;439-451.
88. Sternberg K.J., Lamb M.E., Hershkowitz I., Yudilevitch L., Orbach Y., Esplin P.W., Hovav M. Effects of introductory style on children's abilities to describe experiences of sexual abuse. Child Abuse & Neglect. 21:1997;1133-1146.
89. Stevenson K.M., Leung P., Cheung K.M. Competency-based evaluation of interviewing skills in child sexual abuse cases. Social Work Research & Abstracts. 28:1992;11-16.
90. Tulving E. Elements of episodic memory. 1983;Clarendon Press, Oxford.
91. Underwood B.J. Attributes of memory. Psychological Review. 76:1969;559-573.
92. Walker A.G., Warren A.R. The language of the child abuse interview Asking the questions, understanding the answers . Ney T. True and false allegations of child sexual abuse Assessment and case management . 1995;153-162 Brunner/Mazel, New York.
93. Warren A.R., Lane P. Effects of timing and type of questioning on eyewitness accuracy and suggestibility. Zaragoza M.S., Graham J.R., Hall G.C.N., Hirschman R., Ben-Porath Y.S. Memory and testimony in the child witness. 1995;44-60 Sage, Thousand Oaks, CA.
94. Warren A.R., Woodall C.E., Hunt J.S., Perry N.W. It sounds good in theory, but ... "Do investigative interviews follow guidelines based on memory research? Child Maltreatment. 1:1996;231-245.
95. Warren A.R., Woodall C.E., Thomas M., Nunno M., Keeney J., Larson S., Stadfeld J. Assessing the effectiveness of a training program for interviewing child witnesses. Applied Developmental Science. 3:1999;128-135.
96. Wilkinson J. Context effects in children's event memory. Gruneberg M.M., Morris P.E. Practical aspects of memory Current research and issues. Vol. 1: Memory in everyday life . 1988;107-111 Wiley, New York.
97. Wilson J.C., Pipe M.E. The effects of cues on young children's recall of real events. New Zealand Journal of Psychology. 18:1989;65-70.
98. Wood, J. A., Schreiber, N., Martinez, K., McLaurin, K., Strok, R., Velarde, L. D., Garven, S., & Malpass, R. S. (1998). Child interviewing techniques in two "ritual abuse" daycare cases: A quantitative comparison. Paper presented at the American Psychology and Law Society conference. Redondo Beach, CA.
99. Yuille J.C., Cutshall J.L. A case study of eyewitness memory of a crime. Journal of Applied Psychology. 71:1986;291-301.
100. Yuille J.C., Cutshall J. Analysis of the statements of victims, witnesses and suspects. Yuille J.C. Credibility assessment. 1989;175-191 Kluwer Academic, Norwell, MA.
101. Yuille J.C., Hunter R., Joffe R., Zaparniuk J. Interviewing children in sexual abuse cases. Goodman G.S., Bottoms B.L. Child victims, child witnesses Understanding and improving testimony . 1993;95-115 Guilford Press, New York.