“For the beginning case worker or those who wish to know about the relevant issues without necessarily becoming directly involved, this little book provides a useful introduction.” --Child & Family Behavior Therapy “The language is conversational, the style directive, addressing the reader personally and the instructions are explicit and stepwise. Following detailed preparation for the interview, there are good suggestions on how to help the child begin talking about any sexual abuse which she might have experienced. Avoidance of leading questions, with examples, is repeatedly advocated.” --Danya Glaser in ACPP Review & Newsletter Taking a comprehensive look at a complex task, How to Interview Sexual Abuse Victims is an excellent introduction to the process of interviewing children and includes a special segment on the appropriate use of anatomical dolls. Marcia Morgan, cocreator of the dolls, walks the reader through an interview from beginning to end and provides information on how to create an environment intended to minimize the child's trauma as well as enhance the amount, quality, and validity of information obtained. The book examines problems professionals might encounter with young children and material on preinterview preparation. In addition, there are sections included that provide training exercises, a glossary, an annotated bibliography, and a listing of audiovisual resources. Based on the author's many years of experience, as well as case law, How to Interview Sexual Abuse Victims is ideally designed for use by professionals including police, social service workers, and prosecutors. “Overall, this brief book is a worthwhile contribution to the literature on the interviewing of child witnesses…. Those who use, or who are considering using, dolls should ensure that they are familiar with this book's contents.” --Ray Bull, review in Expert Evidence: The International Digest of Human Behaviour Science and Law “Highly recommended.” --Family Violence & Sexual Assault Bulletin Book Club

The Interview: Establishing Incident Details

The interview: Establishing incident details

Once the child has given you an indication that sexual abuse has occurred, you have formally entered the interviewing stage. That is, your goal now becomes one of gathering detailed information about the abuse and about the conditions under which it happened. Even though you are no longer primarily interested in establishing rapport, keep in mind that you will be more successful in obtaining information if you are able to maintain an environment in which the child feels comfortable.

Interviewing tools, such as anatomical dolls, puppets, or drawings, may or may not be needed in gathering information from the child. If not, the interviewer should move from rapport building to asking questions and gathering information surrounding the ...

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