Interviewing Preschoolers: Empirical and Theoretical Issues

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9312202 CECI This research will address several questions about the capacity of children to serve as witnesses in legal proceedings, including criminal trials, juvenile court hearings, and civil proceedings such as family courts. There has been much controversy in this area because children are often the only witnesses to events resulting in criminal charges that identify them as victims, and they are frequently in the middle of bitter divorce cases. The courts have made procedural rulings but the scientific basis for these rulings has been challenged. This research will provide some answers to some questions in this complex field by examining the extent to which childrens' memories are susceptible to suggestion and the effectiveness of investigative techniques. The research will not exhaust the questions to be examined or the different methodological approaches that might be used, but it represents a solid beginning in an important area of psychology and law. The project is comprised of three experimental studies involving pre-school age children: (1) childrens' capacity to distinguish in memory between true and false events, (2) childrens' recollection of stressful events after a series of interviews about them, including the use of anatomical dolls, and (3) the effects, on the accuracy of childrens' testimony and on jurors' perceptions of their credibility, of shielding children from the alleged perpetrator during testimony. This research will make an important empirical and theoretical contribution to scientific knowledge about childrens' reports, and a significant contribution to sound legal practice and the reliability of legal processes. ***