Considerations for experts in assessing the credibility of recovered memories of child sexual abuse: the importance of maintaining a case-specific focus

No Thumbnail Available
File version
Author(s)
Alison, Laurence
Kebbell, Mark
Lewis, Penney
Griffith University Author(s)
Primary Supervisor
Other Supervisors
Editor(s)
Date
2006
Size
File type(s)
Location
License
Abstract

In this article, the authors argue that a variety of psychological factors stand in the way of providing expert advice to the courts in terms of assessing the credibility of a complainant's account of sexual abuse when there is a significant delay in reporting. These include difficulties in assessing (a) the complainant's account of how he or she claims to have remembered or forgotten the abuse, (b) whether (and how) the claim of abuse originated within a therapeutic setting, and (c) the difficulty of generalizing from empirical evidence. It is argued that all of these issues can be more easily avoided if experts maintain a case-specific focus. In this article, the authors review both the psychological and legal controversies surrounding the false-recovered memory debate, discuss how courts approach the admissibility and use of recovered memory testimony, and conclude that expert witnesses should carefully consider the above points before drawing general conclusions from the literature and applying them to individual cases.

Journal Title

Psychology, Public Policy, and Law

Conference Title
Book Title
Edition
Volume

12

Issue

4

Thesis Type
Degree Program
School
Patent number
Funder(s)
Grant identifier(s)
Rights Statement
Rights Statement
Item Access Status
Note
Access the data
Related item(s)
Subject

Policy and administration

Persistent link to this record
Citation
Collections