Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Effects of Interviewer Support on Maltreated and At-Risk Children’s Memory and Suggestibility

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
International Journal on Child Maltreatment: Research, Policy and Practice Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The present study examined the effects of interviewer support on the memory and suggestibility of children (N = 71), all of whom were involved in child maltreatment investigations. This was accomplished by questioning 3- to 12-year olds (66% African American) about a game played individually with an experimenter at the end of the maltreatment investigation, so that the results did not affect any evaluations or legal proceedings. After the game, the children were interviewed in a warm and engaging high support manner or in a relatively formal and withdrawn low support fashion--the latter, likely considered by some as “neutral” in child forensic interviews. Typical age effects emerged overall; for example, with the preschool (compared to school-aged) children providing fewer correct units of information in free recall and making more errors to specific and misleading questions. However, findings also varied in relation to interviewer support and type of question. To specific questions, older (but not younger) children in the low (compared to high) interviewer support condition made more omission errors, possibly due to the interviewer’s low support resulting in a “no bias” for older children in answering these questions. To misleading questions, younger (but not older) children in the high (compared to low) support condition made significantly more commission errors. The elevated commission error rate in the high support group appeared to be driven by a small number of 3- and 4-year-olds who had a “yes-bias” when answering misleading questions. Implications for children’s accuracy in maltreatment investigations and for children’s psychological and physical security are discussed.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Aldridge, M., & Wood, J. (1998). Interviewing children: A guide for child care and forensic practitioners. New York: John Wiley.

    Google Scholar 

  • Almerigogna, J., Ost, J., Bull, R., & Akehurst, L. (2007). A state of high anxiety: How non-supportive interviewers can increase the suggestibility of child witnesses. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 21, 963–974. https://doi.org/10.1002/acp.1311.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Almerigogna, J., Ost, J., Akehurst, L., & Fluck, M. (2008). How interviewers’ nonverbal behaviors can affect children’s perceptions and suggestibility. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 100, 17–39. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jecp.2008.01.006.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Baker-Ward, L., Gordon, B. N., Ornstein, P. A., Larus, D. M., & Clubb, P. A. (1993). Young children's long-term retention of a pediatric examination. Child Development, 64, 1519–1533. https://doi.org/10.2307/1131550.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Billings, F. J., Taylor, T., Burns, J., Corey, D. L., Garven, S., & Wood, J. M. (2007). Can reinforcement induce children to falsely incriminate themselves? Law and Human Behavior, 31, 125–139. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10979-006-9049-5.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bottoms, B. L., Quas, J. A., & Davis, S. L. (2007). The influence of interviewer-provided interviewer support on children's suggestibility, memory, and disclosures. In M. E. Pipe, M. E. Lamb, Y. Orbach, & A. C. Cedarborg (Eds.), Child sexual abuse: Disclosure, delay, and denial (pp. 135–157). Mahwah: Erlbaum.

    Google Scholar 

  • Brady, M. S., Poole, D. A., Warren, A. R., & Jones, H. R. (1999). Young children’s responses to yes/no questions: Patterns and problems. Applied Developmental Science, 3, 47–57. https://doi.org/10.1207/s1532480xads0301_6.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bruck, M., Ceci, S. J., Francoeur, E., & Barr, R. J. (1995). “I hardly cried when I got my shot!” influencing children’s reports about a visit to their pediatrician. Child Development, 66, 193–208. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8624.1995.tb00865.x.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Carter, C. A., Bottoms, B. L., & Levine, M. (1996). Linguistic and socioemotional influences on the accuracy of children’s reports. Law and Human Behavior, 20, 335–358. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01499027.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Case, R. (1988). Toward a neo-Piagetian theory of cognitive and emotional development. Developmental Review, 8, 1–51.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ceci, S. J., & Friedman, R. D. (2000). The suggestibility of children: Scientific research and legal implications. Cornell Law Review, 86, 34–108.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chae, Y., Goodman, G. S., Eisen, M. L., & Qin, J. (2011). Event memory and suggestibility in abused and neglected children: Trauma-related psychopathology and cognitive functioning. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 110, 520–538. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jecp.2011.05.00.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Davies, G. M., Westcott, H. L., & Horan, N. (2000). The impact of questioning style on the content of investigative interviews with suspected child sexual abuse victims. Psychology, Crime and Law, 6(2), 81–97. https://doi.org/10.1080/10683160008410834.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Davis, S. L., & Bottoms, B. L. (2002). Effects of interviewer support on children’s eyewitness reports: A test of the underlying mechanism. Law and Human Behavior, 26, 185–215. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1014692009941.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • DeLoache, J. S., & Marzolf, D. P. (1995). The use of dolls to interview young children: Issues of symbolic representation. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 60, 155–173. https://doi.org/10.1006/jecp.1995.1036.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • DHHS. (2019). Child maltreatment 2017. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration on children and families.

  • Eisen, M. L., Goodman, G. S., Qin, J., Davis, S., & Crayton, J. (2007). Maltreated children’s memory: Accuracy, suggestibility, and psychopathology. Developmental Psychology, 43, 1275–1294. https://doi.org/10.1037/0012-1649.43.6.1275.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Eysenck, M. W., & Calvo, M. . G. (1992). Anxiety and performance: The processing efficiency theory. Cognition and Emotion, 6, 409–434. https://doi.org/10.1080/02699939208409696.

  • Feld, B. C. (2014). Kids, cops, and confessions: Inside the interrogation room. New York: NYU Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fischer, K. W. (1980). A theory of cognitive development: The control and construction of hierarchies of skills. Psychological Review, 87, 477–531. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-295X.87.6.477.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fritzley, H. V., & Lee, K. (2003). Do young children always say yes to yes/no questions? A metadevelopmental study of the affirmation bias. Child Development, 74, 1297–1313. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8624.00608.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fritzley, H. V., Lindsay, R. C., & Lee, K. (2013). Young children’s response tendencies towards yes/no questions. Child Development, 84, 711–725. https://doi.org/10.1111/cdev.12006.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Garven, S., Wood, J. M., Malpass, R. S., & Shaw, J. S., III. (1998). More than suggestion: The effect of interviewing techniques from the McMartin preschool case. Journal of Applied Psychology, 83, 347–359. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.83.3.347.

  • Goldfarb, D., Appell, J., Vidales, D., Cartwright, A., Wang, Y., Wu, J., … Goodman, G. S. (2019a). Children’s cooperation in and memory for a trauma-focused forensic interview. In J. Klemfuss (chair), Interpersonal engagement and children’s reporting in interview contexts. American Psychology-Law Society Convention, Portland, OR.

  • Goldfarb, D., Goodman, G. S., Larson, R. P., Eisen, M. L., & Qin, J. (2019b). Long-term memory in adults exposed to childhood violence: Remembering genital contact nearly 20 years later. Clinical Psychological Science, (7) 381–396.

  • Goodman, G. S., & Aman, C. (1990). Children's use of anatomically detailed dolls to recount an event. Child Development, 61, 1859–1871. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8624.1990.tb03570.x.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Goodman, G. S., & Reed, R. S. (1986). Age differences in eyewitness testimony. Law and Human Behavior, 10, 317–332. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01047344.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Goodman, G. S., Bottoms, B. L., Schwartz-Kenney, B., & Rudy, L. (1991). Children's memory for a stressful event: Improving children's reports. Journal of Narrative and Life History, 1(1), 69–99. https://doi.org/10.1075/jnlh.1.1.05chi.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Goodman, G. S., Taub, E. P., Jones, D. P., England, P., Port, L. K., Rudy, L., & Prado, L. (1992). Testifying in criminal court: Emotional effects on child sexual assault victims. Monographs of the Society for Research in Child Development, i–159. https://doi.org/10.2307/1166127.

  • Goodman, G. S., Sharma, A., Thomas, S. F., & Considine, M. (1995). Mother knows best: Effects of relationship status and interviewer bias on children's memory. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 60, 195–228. https://doi.org/10.1006/jecp.1995.1038.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Goodman, G. S., Tobey, A., Batterman-Faunce, J., Orcutt, H., Thomas, S., Shapiro, C., & Sachsenmaier, T. (1998). Face-to-face confrontation: Effects of closed-circuit technology on children’s eyewitness testimony and jurors’ decisions. Law and Human Behavior, 22, 165–203.

  • Goodman, G. S., Goldfarb, D., Quas, J. A., Narr, R. K., Milojevich, H., & Cordon, I. M. (2016). Memory development, emotion regulation, and trauma-related psychopathology. In D. Cicchetti (Ed.), Developmental psychopathology: Maladaptation and psychopathology (pp. 555–590). Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons Inc.

    Google Scholar 

  • Greenstock, J., & Pipe, M. E. (1996). Interviewing children about past events: The influence of peer support and misleading questions. Child Abuse & Neglect, 20, 69–80. https://doi.org/10.1016/0145-2134(95)00117-4.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hershkowitz, I. (2009). Socioemotional factors in child sexual abuse investigations. Child Maltreatment, 14, 172–181. https://doi.org/10.1177/1077559508326224.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hershkowitz, I. (2011). Rapport building in investigative interviews of children. In M. E. Lamb, D. J. LaRooy, L. C. Malloy, & C. Katz (Eds.), Children's testimony: A handbook of psychological research and forensic practice (pp. 109–128). New York: John Wiley & Sons. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781119998495.ch6.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Hershkowitz, I., Orbach, Y., Lamb, M. E., Sternberg, K. J., & Horowitz, D. (2002). A comparison of mental and physical context reinstatement in forensic interviews with alleged victims of sexual abuse. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 16, 429–441. https://doi.org/10.1002/acp.804.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hershkowitz, I., Horowitz, D., & Lamb, M. E. (2005). Trends in children's disclosure of abuse in Israel: A national study. Child Abuse & Neglect, 29(11), 1203–1214. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chiabu.2005.04.008.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hershkowitz, I., Orbach, Y., Lamb, M. E., Sternberg, K. J., & Horowitz, D. (2006). Dynamics of forensic interviews with suspected abuse victims who do not disclose abuse. Child Abuse & Neglect, 30, 753–769. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chiabu.2005.10.016.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Imhoff, M. C., & Baker-Ward, L. (1999). Preschoolers' suggestibility: Effects of developmentally appropriate language and interviewer supportiveness. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 20, 407–429. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0193-3973(99)00022-2.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Karmi-Visel, Y., Hershkowitz, I., Lamb, M. E., & Blasbalg, U. (in press). Facilitating the expression of emotions by alleged victims of child abuse during investigative interviews using the revised NICHD protocol. Child Maltreatment. https://doi.org/10.17863/CAM.36470.

  • Krähenbühl, S., & Blades, M. (2006). The effect of interviewing techniques on young children's responses to questions. Child: Care, Health and Development, 32, 321–331. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2214.2006.00608.x.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lamb, M. E., Orbach, Y., Hershkowitz, I., Esplin, P. W., & Horowitz, D. (2007). A structured forensic interview protocol improves the quality and informativeness of investigative interviews with children: A review of research using the NICHD investigative interview protocol. Child Abuse & Neglect, 31(11), 1,201–1,231. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chiabu.2007.03.021.

  • Lyon, T. D. (1999). The new wave of suggestibility research: A critique. Cornell Law Review, 84, 1,004–1,087.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mehrani, M., & Peterson, C. (2016). Interviewing preschoolers: Response bias to yes-no questions. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 31, 91–98.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Moston, S., & Engelberg, T. (1992). The effects of interviewer support on children’s eyewitness testimony. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 6, 61–75. https://doi.org/10.1002/acp.2350060104.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Okanda, M., & Itakura, S. (2007). Do Japanese children say ‘yes’ to their mothers? A naturalistic study of response bias in parent-toddler conversations. First Language, 27, 421–429. https://doi.org/10.1177/0142723707081653.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Okanda, M., & Itakura, S. (2008). Children in Asian cultures say yes to yes—No questions: Common and cultural differences between Vietnamese and Japanese children. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 32, 131–136. https://doi.org/10.1177/0165025407087211.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Orbach, Y., Shiloach, H., & Lamb, M. E. (2007). Reluctant disclosures of child sexual abuse. In M.-E. Pipe, M. E. Lamb, Y. Orbach, & A.-C. Cederborg (Eds.), Child sexual abuse: Disclosure, delay, and denial (pp. 115–134). Mahwah: Erlbaum.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ornstein, P. A., Gordon, B. N., & Larus, D. M. (1992). Children’s memory for a personally experienced event: Implications for testimony. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 6, 49–60. https://doi.org/10.1002/acp.2350060103.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Otgaar, H., Howe, M. L., Merckelbach, H., & Muris, P. (2018). Who is the better eyewitness? Sometimes adults but at other times children. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 27, 378–385.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Peter-Hagene, L., Bottoms, B. L., Davis, S. L., & Nysse-Carris, K. L. (2014). Social support effects on children’s suggestibility after one year. New Orleans: American Psychology Law Conference.

    Google Scholar 

  • Peterson, C., & Biggs, M. (1997). Interviewing children about trauma: Problems with “specific” questions. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 10, 279–290. https://doi.org/10.1002/jts.2490100208.

    Google Scholar 

  • Peterson, C., Dowden, C., & Tobin, J. (1999). Interviewing preschoolers: Comparisons of yes – No and wh- questions. Law and Human Behavior, 23(5), 539–555. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1022396112719.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Poole, D. A., Dickinson, J. J., Brubacher, S. P., Liberty, A. E., & Kaake, A. M. (2014). Deficient cognitive control fuels children’s exuberant false allegations. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 118, 101–109. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jecp.2013.08.013.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Quas, J. A., & Lench, H. C. (2007). Arousal at encoding, arousal at retrieval, interviewer support, and children’s memory for a mild stressor. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 21, 289–305. https://doi.org/10.1002/acp.1279.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Quas, J. A., Bauer, A., & Boyce, W. T. (2004). Physiological reactivity, interviewer support, and memory in early childhood. Child Development, 75, 797–814.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Quas, J. A., Wallin, A. R., Papini, S., Lench, H., & Scullin, M. H. (2005). Suggestibility, interviewer support, and memory for a novel experience in young children. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 91, 315–341. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jecp.2005.03.008.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rush, E. B., Quas, J. A., Yim, I. S., Nikolayev, M., Clark, S. E., & Larson, R. P. (2014). Stress, interviewer support, and children’s eyewitness identification accuracy. Child Development, 85(3), 1292–1305. https://doi.org/10.1111/cdev.12177.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Saywitz, K. J., & Camparo, L. B. (2014). Evidence-based child forensic interviewing: The developmental narrative elaboration interview. New York: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Saywitz, K. J., Geiselman, R. E., & Bornstein, G. K. (1992). Effects of cognitive interviewing and practice on children's recall performance. Journal of Applied Psychology, 77, 744–756. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.77.5.744.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Saywitz, K. J., Wells, C. R., Larson, R. P., & Hobbs, S. D. (2019). Effects of interviewer support on children’s memory and suggestibility: Systematic review and meta-analyses of experimental research. Trauma, Violence, & Abuse, 20, 22–39 https://doi.org/10.1177/1524838016683457.

  • Saywitz, K. J., Lyon, T. D., & Goodman, G. S. (2018). When interviewing children: A review and update. In B. Klika & J. Conte (Eds.), The APSAC handbook on child maltreatment (4th ed., pp. 310–329). Newbury Park: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Whitcomb, D., Goodman, G. S., Runyan, D., & Hoak, S. (1994). The emotional effects of testifying on sexually abused children. National Institute of Justice: Research in Brief.

Download references

Acknowledgements

This research was funded by a grant to Mitchell L. Eisen and Gail S. Goodman from the National Center on Child Abuse and Neglect, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Public Health.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, California State University, Los Angeles, 5151 State University Dr., Los Angeles, CA, 90032-8227, USA

    Mitchell L. Eisen, Jessica Diep & Marianne T. Lacsamana

  2. Department of Psychology, University of California, Davis, 1 Shields Avenue, Davis, CA, 95616, USA

    Gail S. Goodman

  3. University of Denver, Denver, CO, USA

    Julie Olomi

  4. Florida International University, Miami, FL, USA

    Deborah Goldfarb

  5. University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA, USA

    Jodi A. Quas

Authors
  1. Mitchell L. Eisen
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Gail S. Goodman
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Jessica Diep
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Marianne T. Lacsamana
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Julie Olomi
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Deborah Goldfarb
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  7. Jodi A. Quas
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Mitchell L. Eisen or Gail S. Goodman.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of Interest

On behalf of all authors, the corresponding author states that there is no conflict of interest.

Additional information

Publisher’s Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Eisen, M.L., Goodman, G.S., Diep, J. et al. Effects of Interviewer Support on Maltreated and At-Risk Children’s Memory and Suggestibility. Int. Journal on Child Malt. 2, 55–78 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42448-019-00016-7

Download citation

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s42448-019-00016-7

Keywords

Search

Navigation