Copyright © 2012 Pearson Canada Inc.6-1 Chapter 6 Child Victims and Witnesses 6-1

Copyright © 2012 Pearson Canada Inc.6-2 Learning Objectives Differentiate between techniques that decrease vs. increase accurate recall Summarize children’s ability to recall/describe people’s appearances Describe a lineup technique for children Outline courtroom accommodations Explain child maltreatment and consequences 6-2

Copyright © 2012 Pearson Canada Inc.6-3 History of Child Witnesses In the early 1900s, the prevailing negative attitudes towards child witnesses were tested Results indicated that children were highly suggestible and capable of recalling inaccurate testimony (Whipple, 1909, 1912) 6-3

Copyright © 2012 Pearson Canada Inc.6-4 Recall for Events More recent research indicates children can recall events accurately using proper questioning techniques (Ceci & Bruck, 1993) –Free recall tends to produce more accurate information than direct questioning, however, not much is elicited with free recall 6-4

Copyright © 2012 Pearson Canada Inc.6-5 Factors Influencing Recall Age impacts the effects of leading questions; younger children are more suggestible than older children (Roebers et al., 2002) Children are more likely to say “I don’t know” to wh- questions than yes/no questions when the questions are unanswerable 6-5

Copyright © 2012 Pearson Canada Inc.6-6 Children’s Suggestibility Social compliance: –Children trust and want to cooperate with adult interviewers Cognitive system: –Children differ in the ways they encode, store, and retrieve information –Children can misattribute where information comes from 6-6

Copyright © 2012 Pearson Canada Inc.6-7 Techniques to Interview Children Anatomically detailed dolls Criterion-based content analysis Step-wise interview Narrative elaboration National Institute of Child and Human Development interview protocol Cognitive interview 6-7

Copyright © 2012 Pearson Canada Inc.6-8 Anatomically Detailed Dolls Assumption: Children provide information that they would not otherwise Problems: –Research does not support this assumption –Dolls are not “standardized” –Unable to asses child’s behavior with the dolls 6-8

Copyright © 2012 Pearson Canada Inc.6-9 Criterion-Based Content Analysis Part of statement validity analysis (SVA) Attempts to distinguish between true and fabricated statements Assumes difference in quality and content Some research indicates this protocol is successful (Parker & Brown, 2000) Critics argues it is subjective, lacks standardization and theoretical framework 6-9

Copyright © 2012 Pearson Canada Inc.6-10 Step-Wise Interview Children are asked free recall questions, followed by more specific questions, as needed Procedure is consistent with what we know about how to interview children to elicit accurate information Procedure commonly used in Canada 6-10

Copyright © 2012 Pearson Canada Inc.6-11 Narrative Elaboration Children organize stories into categories (e.g., participants, settings, actions, etc.) Each category has a card to act as a cue Children practice telling stories with the cards prior to being asked about the critical event Asking children to report across categories increases information recalled 6-11

Copyright © 2012 Pearson Canada Inc.6-12 Child and Human Development Protocol Open-ended questioning with two types of prompts Provides information on how to start interview and introduce topic of abuse Positive results have been obtained with the use of this protocol 6-12

Copyright © 2012 Pearson Canada Inc.6-13 Cognitive Interview Based on memory retrieval techniques (e.g., reinstating context, reporting everything, and recalling in different orders) Can be adapted for use with children Children reported more accurate information compared to control conditions (Kohnken et al., 1999) 6-13

Copyright © 2012 Pearson Canada Inc.6-14 Recall After a Long Delay False memory syndrome: client’s false belief that he/she was sexually abused as a child Clients may have no memories of this abuse until they enter therapy to deal with some other psychological problem 6-14

Copyright © 2012 Pearson Canada Inc.6-15 Traumatic Memories Forgotten? Porter and Birt (2001) found that the majority of participants who reported abuse consciously forced the memory out of mind rather than not having any memory of it 6-15

Copyright © 2012 Pearson Canada Inc.6-16 Historic Child Sexual Abuse Common features: –Female complainant –9-years-old when abuse started and 12- years-old when it ended –Continuous memory of the abuse –Male relative abuser –23-years-older than victim –Repeated abuse 6-16

Copyright © 2012 Pearson Canada Inc.6-17 Culprit Descriptions Older children provide a greater number of details than younger children Exterior facial features (e.g., hair) are more likely to be reported than interior facial features (e.g., nose) Height, weight, and age are frequently reported, however accuracy is problematic for children and youth (and adults) 6-17

Copyright © 2012 Pearson Canada Inc.6-18 Lineup Identification Children and adults produce comparable correct identification rates (target-present lineups) Children produce lower correct rejection rates than adults (target-absent lineups) 6-18

Copyright © 2012 Pearson Canada Inc.6-19 Identification Procedures Children have difficulty with sequential lineups Pozzulo and Lindsay (1999) developed the elimination lineup for children 6-19

Copyright © 2012 Pearson Canada Inc.6-20 Elimination Lineup Step 1: All lineup photos are presented and the child is asked to pick out the person who looks most like the culprit Step 2: The child is asked to compare his/her memory of the culprit with the photo in step 1 to decide if it is in fact the culprit Elimination procedure significantly reduces false positive responding 6-20

Copyright © 2012 Pearson Canada Inc.6-21 Testifying in Court Competency inquiry: Questions posed to witnesses under 14-years to determine whether they are able to communicate the evidence and understand the difference between the truth and a lie, and when testifying determine if they feel compelled to tell the truth 6-21

Copyright © 2012 Pearson Canada Inc.6-22 Courtroom Accommodations Screen/shield Closed-circuit television Support person Pre-recorded video testimony Hearsay Close courtroom to public/media 6-22

Copyright © 2012 Pearson Canada Inc.6-23 Child Maltreatment TypeDescriptionExamples PhysicalApplication of force to a child to cause injury shaking, biting, poisoning SexualAn adult uses a child for sexual purposes exploitation, fondling NeglectA child is not provided with requisite attention to meet the child’s needs Failure to provide nutrition, clothes EmotionalActs or omissions that could cause serious harm to a child Terrorizing, social isolation 6-23

Copyright © 2012 Pearson Canada Inc.6-24 Reporting Abuse In need of protection: A child’s need to be separated from his/her caregiver because of maltreatment In Canada (excluding Yukon), children in need of protection must be reported to authorities Prevalent categories; neglect, domestic violence exposure, and physical abuse 6-24

Copyright © 2012 Pearson Canada Inc.6-25 Risk Factors: Physical Abuse Being male Young maternal age Single-parent status History of childhood physical abuse Spousal assault Unplanned pregnancy/negative attitude History of substance abuse Low socioeconomic status 6-25

Copyright © 2012 Pearson Canada Inc.6-26 Risk Factors: Sexual Abuse Being female Living in a family without a biological parent Poor relationship between parents Presence of a step-father Poor child-parent relationship 6-26

Copyright © 2012 Pearson Canada Inc.6-27 Short-Term Effects of Physical Abuse Greater perceptual-motor deficits Lowered measured intellectual functioning Lower academic achievement Externalizing behavior Mental health difficulties 6-27

Copyright © 2012 Pearson Canada Inc.6-28 Long-Term Effects of Physical Abuse Inflicting and receiving dating/family violence 6-28

Copyright © 2012 Pearson Canada Inc.6-29 Short-Term Effects of Sexual Abuse Behaviour problems Lowered self-esteem Inappropriate sexuality Symptoms of consistent with post- traumatic stress disorder Physical difficulties (e.g., sleep disturbance, eating disorders, stomach problems, and headaches) 6-29

Copyright © 2012 Pearson Canada Inc.6-30 Long-Term Effects of Sexual Abuse Psychiatric disorders Dysfunctional disorders Neurobiological dysregulation 6-30