Forensic interviewers' difficulty with the birthday narrative.
Child Abuse Negl
; 152: 106752, 2024 Jun.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-38555714
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND:
Narrative practice increases children's productivity in forensic interviews, and one recommended topic is the child's last birthday, though interviewers have raised concerns about its productivity. STUDY 1OBJECTIVE:
Study 1 surveyed forensic interviewers' use of and attitudes about the birthday narrative. PARTICIPANTS ANDSETTING:
Participants included 170 forensic interviewers who subscribed to a webinar promoting use of the birthday narrative (Mage = 43 years, SD = 10.2, 94 % female).RESULTS:
Over half (55 %) of interviewers reported that they rarely/never asked about children's birthdays, and non-users were especially likely to view the birthday narrative as never/rarely productive. Although interviewers viewed memory difficulties as more likely to occur with the birthday narrative than other practice topics (the child's likes, the child's day), non-users did not view memory difficulties, reluctance, generic reports, or religious objections as especially problematic. Open-ended responses identified negative experiences with the birthday as an additional concern, and interviewers' recommended wording of the prompts suggested suboptimal questioning strategies. STUDY 2OBJECTIVE:
Study 2 assessed the use of the birthday narrative in forensic interviews. PARTICIPANTS ANDSETTING:
The sample included 350 forensic interviews with 4- to 12-year-old children (Mage = 8.85, SD = 2.59).RESULTS:
Only 4 % of children failed to recall substantive information if interviewers persisted, though another 11 % failed when interviewers stopped persisting. Invitations were more effective than other question types, especially among older children. 21 % of children mentioned a negative detail during their narrative.CONCLUSIONS:
Interviewers' skepticism about the birthday narrative may be due to suboptimal questioning and sensitivity to occasional failures and negative information.Palavras-chave
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Narração
Limite:
Adult
/
Child
/
Female
/
Humans
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Male
/
Middle aged
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Child Abuse Negl
Ano de publicação:
2024
Tipo de documento:
Article