Interviewing Children Who May have been Abused: A Historical Perspective and Overview of Controversies

Abstract

This article provides a historical perspective on the practice of interviewing children in cases of alleged sexual abuse and current controversies about these interviews. The following controversies and related writing and research are discussed: (a) the ability of the interviewer to conduct a competent interview, (b) the competence of the child to describe actual events, (c) interview structure and process, and (d) decision making about the likelihood of sexual abuse.