Interviewing Children about Sexual Abuse: Controversies and Best Practice

327 Pages·2007·1.22 MB·English

by  Kathleen Coulborn Faller

Interviewing Children About Sexual Abuse
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Interviewing Children
About Sexual Abuse
CONTROVERSIES AND BEST PRACTICE
Kathleen Coulborn Faller
1
2007
1
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Faller, Kathleen Coulborn.
Interviewing children about sexual abuse : controversies and best practice /
Kathleen Coulborn Faller.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN-13 978-0-19-531177-8
ISBN 0-19-531177-9
1. Child sexual abuse—Investigation—United States. 2. Interviewing in
child abuse—United States. 3. Sexually abused children—United States. I. Title.
HV8079.C48F37 2007
362.76'565—dc22 2006016751
9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Printed in the United States of America
on acid-free paper
We dedicate Interviewing Children About Sexual Abuse
to our much-missed colleague, William N. Friedrich,
better known as Bill. He was a personal and professional
inspiration to us all. He had an extraordinary impact upon
the field of child sexual abuse assessment and treatment.
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Preface
Child sexual abuse is a hotly contested societal issue. Sexual abuse
engenders controversy because both believing and disbelieving sexual
abuse reports have grave and far-reaching consequences for the chil-
dren, adults, and institutions involved in such allegations. For example,
disbelieving an accurate child disclosure can leave the victim in dire
jeopardy. On the other hand, incorrectly believing a child has been sex-
ually abused can have devastating effects, principally on the accused.
And perhaps even more fraught are decisions that must be made by
childcaring and other institutions when sexual abuse allegations arise.
These institutions face competing concerns and priorities, for instance,
providing protection for children, supporting and standing by staff,
and preserving the institution’s good name. The stakes are very high,
and emotional reactions can be overwhelming.
Among the sexual abuse issues in dispute are the extent of the prob-
lem, the accuracy of child and adult accounts of sexual abuse, the tech-
niques and strategies used by professionals assessing and investigating
allegations of sexual abuse, methods for decision-making about the
probability of sexual abuse, appropriate interventions in sexual abuse
cases, and the impact of sexual abuse on its victims. This book cannot
address the full spectrum of contested issues. It focuses on child assess-
ment and sexual abuse decision-making, which are related to the issue
of children’s accuracy in their reports of sexual abuse. It addresses
these issues by focusing on knowledge rather than on emotions.
The primary objective of the book is to acquaint professionals with
salient issues in substantive areas related to interviewing children about
allegations of sexual abuse. The book does this by critically evaluating
the research studies, best practice guidelines, and the conceptual, clini-
cal, and opinion-based writings about interviewing and assessing sus-
pected child sexual abuse. This knowledge will inform readers about
how to conduct an adequate assessment of sexual abuse and, using this
viii Preface
knowledge, prepare them to defend evaluation procedures in the court
and other arenas.
Interviewing Childrencovers 17 knowledge areas, one topic per chapter,
all of which are very relevant to assessing children for possible sexual
abuse. The rationale for each chapter and knowledge area is described
briefly below.
Interviewing children about possible sexual abuse occurs in both
forensic (legal) and clinical (therapeutic) domains. The first chapter, by
Kathleen Coulborn Faller, describes the differentiation between foren-
sic and clinical work but also notes the variability of practice in each do-
main and the overlapping nature of forensic and clinical work.
Central to interviewing children about possible sexual abuse are
concerns about their memory and suggestibility. There is a substantial
body of research addressing accuracy of children’s accounts of past ex-
periences. In chapter 2, Erna Olafson examines the sources of informa-
tion about children’s memory and suggestibility and different types of
memory and recall. In addition, she describes age differences, individual
differences, the impact of trauma, and the research that compares the
accuracy of children with and without an abuse history.
Professionals must decide whom to see in what configurations, when
assessing for sexual abuse, and be able to provide a rationale for the
model of assessment they employed. In chapter 3, Faller conceptualizes
current practice as four overlapping models for conducting assessments
for possible sexual abuse. The chapter also guides the reader through
the research and opinion about models for assessment.
Current policy is to advise professionals interviewing for sexual abuse
that they should take a neutral stance, that is, with no vested interest in
finding or not finding evidence of sexual abuse. Faller covers etiology
of the admonition for interviewer neutrality and its utility in chapter 4.
In addition, research demonstrating that interviewer characteristics,
such as gender and profession, predict whether interviewers are more
likely to believe or disbelieve children’s reports, is discussed.
Child welfare resources typically dictate the number of interviews
children receive before a decision is made about the likelihood of sexual
abuse, usually one interview. Relevant research, which suggests that
the number of interviews should vary depending upon where the child
is in the disclosure process, whether the assessor is trying only to deter-
mine abuse or has additional goals, whether the child is safe, how old
the child is, and whether the child has mental health problems form the
substance of chapter 5.
The documentation debate revolves around whether or not to video
record child assessment interviews. In the 1980s, a videotape of the child’s
interview promised to be a solution to the documentation dilemma and
a substitute for child testimony in court. Videos have not been entirely
satisfactory in meeting either goal. Chapter 6 covers various forms of
Preface ix
documentation, the professional debate about documentation, and ad-
vantages and disadvantages of videotaping and offers suggestions about
how to and whether to videotape.
The phases or stages of the child interview are the subject of numer-
ous guidelines, some informative research, and a great deal of opinion.
Employing an interview structure that is evidence based, comports
with best practice, and yet accommodates the needs of the individual
child is a challenge. In chapter 7, Faller conceptualizes interview struc-
tures along a continuum of prescriptiveness. Taking into account both
the research and practice literature, the chapter discusses the chronol-
ogy of an interview, describing components that are recommended at
various phases of the interview and their empirical support. Finally,
the chapter presents advantages and disadvantages of structured in-
terview protocols.
Perhaps the most hotly debated aspect of the child interview is the
questions employed by the interviewer (e.g., Faller, 2003; Poole & Lind-
say, 2002; Poole & Lamb, 1998; A. G. Walker, 1999, 2001). The core of the
debate is whether or not a particular type of question elicits accurate in-
formation from the child. Agreat deal of research has been undertaken
on questioning procedures, although most of this is analogue research.
To assist readers, in chapter 8, question types are divided into three gen-
eral categories: preferred, less preferred, and least preferred. Each type
of question is described and illustrated, and differing opinions about the
appropriateness of each type of question are discussed. Additional ques-
tioning controversies are also addressed.
Another contested issue is the use of media, props, tools, or aids, as
means of communication about abuse. The controversy over media orig-
inated with the use of anatomical dolls, that is, dolls with private parts
(Faller, 2003). The research and practice on anatomical dolls, anatomi-
cal drawings, and free drawing are covered in chapter 9 (Everson & Boat,
2002). Interviewers may employ other media, but other media lack an
empirical base. Indeed, most of the research is on the use of anatomical
dolls, which have been the subject of more than 100 written works.
Preschool children pose a special challenge in sexual abuse assess-
ment because of their limited communication skills and increased sug-
gestibility compared with older children (e.g., Ceci & Bruck, 1993). In
chapter 10, Faller and Sandra K. Hewitt provide guidelines for both
very young children, ages 18 months to 3 years, and older preschoolers.
The chapter describes the unique developmental considerations and
data-gathering methods for preschool children when there are sexual
abuse concerns.
Children with special needs because of developmental and/or phys-
ical disabilities also require special interview skills. In chapter 11, Faller
and Deborah Davies discuss research on children with disabilities,
which includes their increased risk for abuse and greater dependency