The Effects of Implicit Encouragement and the Putative Confession on Children's Memory Reports

Overview

Journal Child Abuse Negl

Specialty Pediatrics

Date 2018 Apr 1

PMID 29604502

Citations 6

Authors

Kyndra C Cleveland

Jodi A Quas

Thomas D Lyon

Affiliations

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Abstract

The current study tested the effects of two interview techniques on children's report productivity and accuracy following exposure to suggestion: implicit encouragement (backchanneling, use of children's names) and the putative confession (telling children that a suspect "told me everything that happened and wants you to tell the truth"). One hundred and forty-three, 3-8-year-old children participated in a classroom event. One week later, they took part in a highly suggestive conversation about the event and then a mock forensic interview in which the two techniques were experimentally manipulated. Greater use of implicit encouragement led to increases, with age, in children's narrative productivity. Neither technique improved or reduced children's accuracy. No increases in errors about previously suggested information were evident when children received either technique. Implications for the use of these techniques in child forensic interviews are discussed.

Citing Articles

Maltreated and non-maltreated children's truthful and dishonest reports: Linguistic and syntactic differences.

Dykstra V, Lyon T, Evans A Front Psychol. 2023; 13:1025419.

PMID: 36591106 PMC: 9797025. DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.1025419.

Effects of the putative confession instruction on perceptions of children's true and false statements.

Gongola J, Scurich N, Lyon T Appl Cogn Psychol. 2021; 33(4):655-661.

PMID: 33574640 PMC: 7875183. DOI: 10.1002/acp.3483.

Overcoming Disclosure Reluctance in Youth Victims of Sex Trafficking: New Directions for Research, Policy, and Practice.

Lavoie J, Dickerson K, Redlich A, Quas J Psychol Public Policy Law. 2020; 25(4):225-238.

PMID: 32103880 PMC: 7043240. DOI: 10.1037/law0000205.

Implicit Encouragement: Enhancing Youth Productivity when Recounting a Stressful Experience.

Quas J, Dickerson K Int J Child Maltreat. 2020; 2(4):239-254.

PMID: 32095780 PMC: 7039258. DOI: 10.1007/s42448-019-00031-8.

Using implicit encouragement to increase narrative productivity in children: Preliminary evidence and legal implications.

Olaguez A, Castro A, Cleveland K, Klemfuss J, Quas J J Child Custody. 2020; 15(4):286-301.

PMID: 32038112 PMC: 7006990. DOI: 10.1080/15379418.2018.1509758.

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