EFFECTS OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AND EVALUATION OF CHILDREN'S TESTIMONY

这个研究计划包括两个项目。第一个目标

This program of research involves two projects. The goal of the first is to explore the effects of domestic violence on children who were either victims of physical abuse, witnesses of spousal abuse, both victims and witnesses, or neither victims nor witnesses. These children were first assessed in 1988/9 when they were between 8 and 12 years of age, and the results of these assessments have been reported in previous annual reports. The children, their parents, their teachers, and their schools are now being reinterviewed. These assessments will be completed early in FY 96 and analyses of the data will then begin. The goal of the second study is to assess the field reliability and validity of a system for eliciting and assessing statements by children who are alleged to have witnessed sexual abuse. Sites around the United States and in Israel are providing transcripts of audio- or videotaped interviews along with case files to establish case facts independent of the statements. The statements are being assessed using a revision of the Criterion-Based Content Analysis (CBCA) techniques, while case facts are independently rated using "ground truth" assessment scales developed by SSED staff. Other analyses are focused on the relationship between interviewer style and quality of information provided by the child. Several studies have confirmed that open-ended questions elicit longer and more detailed responses than more focused questions, regardless of the number of incidents experienced and the language (English or Hebrew) in which the interview was conducted. Recent studies have shown that interviewers can increase the length and richness of children's accounts by following SSED-designed protocols designed to enhance reliance or recall memory.