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Briere JL, Patkau-Ceh T, Marche TA. Detecting the veracity of children's experiences through drawings. Mem Cognit 2024:10.3758/s13421-024-01527-6. [PMID: 39023698 DOI: 10.3758/s13421-024-01527-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 01/18/2024] [Indexed: 07/20/2024]
Abstract
Research is lacking regarding adults' ability to determine whether children's drawings are based on an experience or not. Drawings are useful in professional settings to alleviate linguistic demands, facilitate memory, and have been used as evidence. Determining the accuracy of veracity assessments of children's drawings would inform professionals regarding their use as evidence of experiences. Twenty-eight children (14 younger, Mage = 7.53 years, SDage = 1.19; 14 older, Mage = 11.67 years, SD = 1.27) produced drawings of two events: one staged experienced, and one narrative-based not experienced event. Fifty (Study 1, Mage = 23.72 years, SDage = 9.70) and 63 (Study 2, Mage = 25.92, SDage = 12.79) adults indicated whether each drawing was based on experience and their confidence in each assessment. In Study 2, additional drawing quality assessments were collected. Results indicated that adults were more accurate at distinguishing experienced than not experienced drawings for older artists. An inverse relationship was observed between confidence and accuracy-participants were more confident when they were inaccurate, especially for younger artists. Drawing quality improved with age and for drawings of experienced events. Adults tended to rate drawings of higher quality as resulting from experience leading to the highest accuracy for drawings from older artists that were based on experience. Overall, results suggest that there may be some features of drawings that allow for above chance levels of accuracy (up to 75%). However, rates are not high enough across assessments (M = 53.93%, range: 39%-75%) to reliably use them as indicators of experience.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer L Briere
- Department of Psychology, University of Saskatchewan, St. Thomas More College, 1437 College Drive, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, S7N 0W6, Canada.
| | - Tobi Patkau-Ceh
- Department of Psychology, University of Saskatchewan, St. Thomas More College, 1437 College Drive, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, S7N 0W6, Canada
| | - Tammy A Marche
- Department of Psychology, University of Saskatchewan, St. Thomas More College, 1437 College Drive, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, S7N 0W6, Canada
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2
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Johnson HM, Block SD, Shestowsky D, Gonzales JE, Shockley KL, Goodman GS. Discernment of Children's True and False Memory Reports: Police Officers and Laypersons. JOURNAL OF INTERPERSONAL VIOLENCE 2024; 39:2238-2260. [PMID: 38158733 DOI: 10.1177/08862605231220022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/03/2024]
Abstract
Adults' ability to accurately evaluate children's statements can have far-reaching consequences within the legal system. This study examined the evaluations of police officers ("experts") and laypersons ("nonexperts") when presented with videotaped interviews of children aged 3 and 5 years who provided either true or false reports or denials. Participants were drawn from several counties in the eastern United States. Children's interview statements fell within four statement types: accurate reports, false reports, accurate denials, and false denials. Both groups of participants displayed overbelief in false denials. Several control variables predicted accuracy, including children's age and children's race. A significant interaction emerged: Experts (vs. nonexperts) had greater odds of being accurate when judging false reports (vs. false denials). These findings highlight the challenges adults face when distinguishing between various types of children's statements. The results have important implications for legal contexts, emphasizing that fact finders need to be mindful of the risks associated with both overaccepting false denials and accepting false reports.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | - Kristy L Shockley
- University of Massachusetts Lowell, USA
- The College of the Holy Cross, Worcester, MA, USA
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3
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In the blink of an eye: Quantitative blink dynamics predict deceptive personality traits in forensic interviews. PERSONALITY AND INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/j.paid.2021.110764] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
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4
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Moreira DS, Fávero M, Oliveira S, Ribeiro FN, Sousa-Gomes V, Moreira D, Magalhães T. First Approach to Abused Children by Health and Educational Professionals. EUROPEAN PSYCHOLOGIST 2021. [DOI: 10.1027/1016-9040/a000412] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
Abstract. The present review aims to address child abuse, a phenomenon to which society has become more aware and directed more efforts, and the role that health and education professionals can play in its prevention and intervention. Based on the premise that professionals with a primary role of working with children, who may have the first contact with them after a situation of abuse, are mostly in the fields of health and education, it is important to reflect on their practices in these cases, which have particular relevance in order to avoid potential situations of secondary victimization, contamination of speech, or even withdrawal of revelation. This review examines the preparation of these professionals to address the allegedly abused child and to report abuse if they feel fit to take appropriate action, focuses mainly on the context of Portugal. What the literature shows is that there are still difficulties in making decisions and taking action in situations where abuse is suspected, based on physical or behavioral evidence from the child, or before his/her disclosure. Further studies are needed on the knowledge of the actions to be taken, and on the actions taken before there is a referral to the competent entities by these professionals. Moreover, there is a discussion on the need to develop training as well as brief and structured protocols for action, in this first line of intervention, when facing potential situations of child abuse.
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Affiliation(s)
- Diana Sá Moreira
- Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Maia University Institute, Portugal
- Institute of Psychology and Neuropsychology of Porto – IPNP Health, Portugal
| | - Marisalva Fávero
- Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Maia University Institute, Portugal
- Unit I & D of the Justice and Governance Research Center of the Law School, University of Minho (JusGov/UM), Portugal
| | - Susana Oliveira
- Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Maia University Institute, Portugal
- Institute of Psychology and Neuropsychology of Porto – IPNP Health, Portugal
| | - Filipe Nunes Ribeiro
- Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Maia University Institute, Portugal
| | - Valéria Sousa-Gomes
- Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Maia University Institute, Portugal
- Institute of Psychology and Neuropsychology of Porto – IPNP Health, Portugal
- Unit I & D of the Justice and Governance Research Center of the Law School, University of Minho (JusGov/UM), Portugal
| | - Diana Moreira
- Institute of Psychology and Neuropsychology of Porto – IPNP Health, Portugal
- Laboratory of Neuropsychophysiology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Porto, Portugal
| | - Teresa Magalhães
- Department of Public Health and Forensic Sciences, and Medical Education, Faculty of Medicine, University of Porto, Portugal
- IINFACTS, Department of Sciences, University Institute of Health Sciences (CESPU), Gandra, Portugal
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5
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Gongola J, Quas JA, Clark SE, Lyon TD. Adults' difficulties in identifying concealment among children interviewed with the putative confession instructions. APPLIED COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY 2021. [DOI: 10.1002/acp.3729] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
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6
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Huang CY, Bull R. Applying Hierarchy of Expert Performance (HEP) to investigative interview evaluation: strengths, challenges and future directions. PSYCHIATRY, PSYCHOLOGY, AND LAW : AN INTERDISCIPLINARY JOURNAL OF THE AUSTRALIAN AND NEW ZEALAND ASSOCIATION OF PSYCHIATRY, PSYCHOLOGY AND LAW 2020; 28:255-273. [PMID: 34712095 PMCID: PMC8547860 DOI: 10.1080/13218719.2020.1770634] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
The purpose of this paper is to systematically examine the research literature on the decision of expert interviewers within the theoretical framework of the Hierarchy of Expert Performance (HEP). After providing an overview of the HEP framework, existing research in the investigative interviewing at each of the eight levels of the HEP framework is reviewed. The results identify areas of strength in reliability between experts' observations (Level 2) and of weakness in reliability between experts' conclusions (Level 6). Biases in investigative interview experts' decision making is also revealed at biasability between expert conclusions (Level 8). Moreover, no published data are available in reliability within experts at the level of observations (Level 1) or conclusions (Level 5), biasability within or between expert observations (Level 3 and 4) and biasability within expert conclusions (Level 7). The findings highlight areas where future research and practical endeavour are much needed for the investigative interview.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ching-Yu Huang
- Department of Psychology, Bournemouth University, Poole, UK
| | - Ray Bull
- Department of Law, Criminology and Social Sciences, University of Derby, Derby, UK
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7
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Akinci C, Sadler-Smith E. ‘If something doesn’t look right, go find out why’: how intuitive decision making is accomplished in police first-response. EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF WORK AND ORGANIZATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY 2019. [DOI: 10.1080/1359432x.2019.1681402] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Cinla Akinci
- School of Management, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, Fife, UK
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8
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Bruer KC, Zanette S, Ding XP, Lyon TD, Lee K. Identifying Liars Through Automatic Decoding of Children's Facial Expressions. Child Dev 2019; 91:e995-e1011. [PMID: 31682003 DOI: 10.1111/cdev.13336] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
This study explored whether children's (N = 158; 4- to 9 years old) nonverbal facial expressions can be used to identify when children are being deceptive. Using a computer vision program to automatically decode children's facial expressions according to the Facial Action Coding System, this study employed machine learning to determine whether facial expressions can be used to discriminate between children who concealed breaking a toy(liars) and those who did not break a toy(nonliars). Results found that, regardless of age or history of maltreatment, children's facial expressions could accurately (73%) be distinguished between liars and nonliars. Two emotions, surprise and fear, were more strongly expressed by liars than nonliars. These findings provide evidence to support the use of automatically coded facial expressions to detect children's deception.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Thomas D Lyon
- University of Southern California-Gould School of Law
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9
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Evans AD, Lyon TD. The effects of the putative confession and evidence presentation on maltreated and non-maltreated 9- to 12-year-olds' disclosures of a minor transgression. J Exp Child Psychol 2019; 188:104674. [PMID: 31476614 DOI: 10.1016/j.jecp.2019.104674] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/27/2018] [Revised: 07/23/2019] [Accepted: 07/23/2019] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Abstract
The current study examined the influence of the putative confession (in which children are told that the suspect told them "everything that happened" and "wants [the child] to tell the truth") and evidence presentation on 9- to 12-year-old maltreated and non-maltreated children's disclosure (N = 321). Half of the children played a forbidden game with an adult confederate that resulted in a laptop computer breaking (no transgression occurred for the other half of the children), followed by coaching to conceal the forbidden game and to falsely disclose the sanctioned game. Children were then interviewed about the interaction with the confederate. Among the 9- and 10-year-olds, the putative confession led to a higher rate of breakage disclosure (62%) than the control condition (13%) and to a higher rate of leakage of incriminating details during recall (47% vs. 9%). Older children were more likely to disclose than younger children and to be uninfluenced by the putative confession. Among all ages, evidence presentation elicited disclosures from 63% of children who had not previously disclosed without eliciting any false disclosures.
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Affiliation(s)
- Angela D Evans
- Department of Psychology, Brock University, St. Catharines, Ontario L2S 3A1, Canada.
| | - Thomas D Lyon
- Gould School of Law, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089, USA
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10
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Gongola J, Scurich N, Lyon TD. Effects of the putative confession instruction on perceptions of children's true and false statements. APPLIED COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY 2019; 33:655-661. [PMID: 33574640 DOI: 10.1002/acp.3483] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
The putative confession (PC) instruction (i.e., "[suspect] told me everything that happened and wants you to tell the truth") during forensic interviews with children has been shown to increase the accuracy of children's statements, but it is unclear whether adults' perceptions are sensitive to this salutary effect. The present study examined how adults perceive children's true and false responses to the PC instruction. Participants (n = 299) watched videotaped interviews of children and rated the child's credibility and the truthfulness of his/her statements. When viewing children's responses to the PC instruction, true and false statements were rated as equally credible, and there was a decrease in accuracy for identifying false denials as lies. These findings suggest that participants viewed the PC instruction as truth-inducing. Implications for the forensic use of the PC instruction are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer Gongola
- Department of Psychological Science, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, California, USA
| | - Nicholas Scurich
- Department of Psychological Science, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, California, USA.,Department of Criminology, Law and Society, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, California, USA
| | - Thomas D Lyon
- Gould School of Law, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California, USA
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11
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Wyman J, Foster I, Crossman A, Colwell K, Talwar V. The efficacy of free-recall, cognitive load, and closed-ended questions when children are asked to falsely testify about a crime. APPLIED COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY 2019. [DOI: 10.1002/acp.3494] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Joshua Wyman
- Department of Educational and Counselling Psychology; McGill University; Montreal Quebec Canada
| | - Ida Foster
- Department of Educational and Counselling Psychology; McGill University; Montreal Quebec Canada
| | - Angela Crossman
- Department of Psychology; John Jay College of Criminal Justice; New York City New York USA
| | - Kevin Colwell
- Department of Psychology; Southern Connecticut State University; New Haven Connecticut USA
| | - Victoria Talwar
- Department of Educational and Counselling Psychology; McGill University; Montreal Quebec Canada
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12
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Hershkowitz I, Melkman EP, Zur R. When Is a Child's Forensic Statement Deemed Credible? A Comparison of Physical and Sexual Abuse Cases. CHILD MALTREATMENT 2018; 23:196-206. [PMID: 29034734 DOI: 10.1177/1077559517734059] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
A large national sample of 4,775 reports of child physical and sexual abuse made in Israel in 2014 was analyzed in order to examine whether assessments of credibility would vary according to abuse type, physical or sexual, and whether child and event characteristics contributing to the probability that reports of abuse would be determined as credible would be similar or different in child physical abuse (CPA) and child sexual abuse (CSA) cases. Results revealed that CPA reports were less likely to be viewed as credible (41.9%) compared to CSA reports (56.7%). Multigroup path analysis, however, indicated equivalence in predicting factors. In a unified model for both types of abuse, salient predictors of a credible judgment were older age, lack of a cognitive delay, and the alleged abusive event being a onetime less severe act. Over and beyond the effects of these factors, abuse type significantly contributed to the prediction of credibility judgments.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Eran P Melkman
- 2 Department of Education, Rees Centre for Research on Fostering and Education, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | - Ronit Zur
- 3 Child Investigations Service, Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs, Jerusalem, Israel
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13
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Talwar V, Hubbard K, Saykaly C, Lee K, Lindsay RCL, Bala N. Does parental coaching affect children's false reports? Comparing verbal markers of deception. BEHAVIORAL SCIENCES & THE LAW 2018; 36:84-97. [PMID: 29460438 DOI: 10.1002/bsl.2331] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/17/2016] [Revised: 07/29/2017] [Accepted: 01/13/2018] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
The present study examined differences in children's true and false narratives as a function of parental coaching by comparing the verbal markers associated with deception. Children (N = 65, 4-7 years old) played the same game with an adult stranger over three consecutive days. Parents coached their children to falsely allege that they had played a second game and to generate details for the fabricated event. One week after the last play session, children were interviewed about their experiences. For children with the least amount of parental coaching, true and false reports could be distinguished by multiple verbal markers of deception (e.g., cognitive processes, temporal information, self-references). The fabricated reports of children who spent more time being coaching by a parent resembled their truthful reports. These findings have implications for real-world forensic contexts when children have been coached to make false allegations and fabricate information at the behest of a parent.
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Affiliation(s)
- Victoria Talwar
- Department of Educational and Counselling Psychology, McGill University, Montreal, Canada
| | - Kyle Hubbard
- Department of Educational and Counselling Psychology, McGill University, Montreal, Canada
| | - Christine Saykaly
- Department of Educational and Counselling Psychology, McGill University, Montreal, Canada
| | - Kang Lee
- Dr Eric Jackman Institute of Child Study and Applied Psychology and Human Development Department, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
| | - R C L Lindsay
- Department of Psychology, Queen's University, Kingston, Canada
| | - Nicholas Bala
- Faculty of Law, Queen's University, Kingston, Canada
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Melkman EP, Hershkowitz I, Zur R. Credibility assessment in child sexual abuse investigations: A descriptive analysis. CHILD ABUSE & NEGLECT 2017; 67:76-85. [PMID: 28242369 DOI: 10.1016/j.chiabu.2017.01.027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/27/2016] [Revised: 01/18/2017] [Accepted: 01/31/2017] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
A major challenge in cases of child sexual abuse (CSA) is determining the credibility of children's reports. Consequently cases may be misclassified as false or deemed 'no judgment possible'. Based on a large national sample of reports of CSA made in Israel in 2014, the study examines child and event characteristics contributing to the probability that reports of abuse would be judged credible. National data files of all children aged 3-14, who were referred for investigation following suspected victimization of sexual abuse, and had disclosed sexual abuse, were analyzed. Cases were classified as either 'credible' or 'no judgment possible'. The probability of reaching a 'credible' judgment was examined in relation to characteristics of the child (age, gender, cognitive delay, marital status of the parents,) and of the abusive event (abuse severity, frequency, perpetrator-victim relationship, perpetrator's use of grooming, and perpetrator's use of coercion), controlling for investigator's identity at the cluster level of the analysis. Of 1563 cases analyzed, 57.9% were assessed as credible. The most powerful predictors of a credible judgment were older age and absence of a cognitive delay. Reports of children to married parents, who experienced a single abusive event that involved perpetrator's use of grooming, were also more likely to be judged as credible. Rates of credible judgments found are lower than expected suggesting under-identification of truthful reports of CSA. In particular, those cases of severe and multiple abuse involving younger and cognitively delayed children are the ones with the lowest chances of being assessed as credible.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eran P Melkman
- School of Social Work, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel.
| | | | - Ronit Zur
- Department of Child Investigations, Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs, Jerusalem, Israel
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Abstract
Beginning in the 1980s, children have increasingly served as witnesses in the criminal, civil, and family courts; currently, >100 000 children appear in court each year. This statement updates the 1992 American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) policy statement "The Child as a Witness" and the subsequent 1999 "The Child in Court: A Subject Review." It also builds on existing AAP policy on adverse life events affecting children and resources developed to understand and address childhood trauma. The purpose of this policy statement is to provide background information on some of the legal issues involving children testifying in court, including the accuracy and psychological impact of child testimony; to provide suggestions for how pediatricians can support patients who will testify in court; and to make recommendations for policy improvements to minimize the adverse psychological consequences for child witnesses. These recommendations are, for the most part, based on studies on the psychological and physiologic consequences of children witnessing and experiencing violence, as well as appearing in court, that have emerged since the previous AAP publications on the subject. The goal is to reduce the secondary traumatization of and long-term consequences for children providing testimony about violence they have experienced or witnessed. This statement primarily addresses children appearing in court as victims of physical or sexual abuse or as witnesses of violent acts; most of the scientific literature addresses these specific situations. It may apply, in certain situations, to children required to provide testimony in custody disputes, child welfare proceedings, or immigration court. It does not address children appearing in court as offenders or as part of juvenile justice proceedings.
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Affiliation(s)
- Robert H Pantell
- Department of Pediatrics, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, California, and Department of Pediatrics, John A. Burns School of Medicine, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, Hawaii
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Kang Lee
- Dr. Erick Jackman Institute of Child Study; University of Toronto; Toronto Ontario Canada
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Lawrence H, Akehurst L, Leach AM, Cherryman J, Vrij A, Arathoon M, Vernham Z. ‘Look This Way’: Using Gaze Maintenance to Facilitate the Detection of Children's False Reports. APPLIED COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY 2016. [DOI: 10.1002/acp.3303] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Hannah Lawrence
- University of Portsmouth; Department of Psychology; Portsmouth UK
| | - Lucy Akehurst
- University of Portsmouth; Department of Psychology; Portsmouth UK
| | - Amy-May Leach
- University of Ontario Institute of Technology; Toronto Canada
| | - Julie Cherryman
- University of Portsmouth; Department of Psychology; Portsmouth UK
| | - Aldert Vrij
- University of Portsmouth; Department of Psychology; Portsmouth UK
| | - Megan Arathoon
- University of Portsmouth; Department of Psychology; Portsmouth UK
| | - Zarah Vernham
- University of Portsmouth; Department of Psychology; Portsmouth UK
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Saykaly C, Crossman A, Talwar V. High Cognitive Load During Cross-Examination: Does It Improve Detection of Children's Truths and Lies? PSYCHIATRY, PSYCHOLOGY, AND LAW : AN INTERDISCIPLINARY JOURNAL OF THE AUSTRALIAN AND NEW ZEALAND ASSOCIATION OF PSYCHIATRY, PSYCHOLOGY AND LAW 2016; 24:278-291. [PMID: 31983954 PMCID: PMC6818421 DOI: 10.1080/13218719.2016.1197816] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/27/2023]
Abstract
The current study used a high cognitive load cross-examination procedure to determine whether this would improve undergraduate students' ability to detect deception in children aged 9 to 12 years. The participants (n = 88) were asked to determine whether children's accounts of an event included a true denial, false denial, true assertion or false assertion about a game played during a home visit occurring one week prior. Overall, the high cognitive load cross-examination did not improve detection rates, in that participants were at chance level for both direct examination (49.4%) and cross-examination (52.3%). Accuracy for true stories was greater than for false stories. Cross-examination improved the detection rates of the false stories, but worsened the accuracy for the true stories. The participants did however rate younger children's true reports to be more credible and believable than their false reports. Participants rated older children's false reports as more credible and believable than their true reports.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christine Saykaly
- Department of Educational and Counselling Psychology, McGill University, Montreal, QC Canada
| | - Angela Crossman
- Department of Psychology, John Jay College of Criminal Justice CUNY, New York, NY, USA
| | - Victoria Talwar
- Department of Educational and Counselling Psychology, McGill University, Montreal, QC Canada
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Talwar V, Murphy SM, Lee K. White lie-telling in children for politeness purposes. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF BEHAVIORAL DEVELOPMENT 2016; 31:1-11. [PMID: 18997880 DOI: 10.1177/0165025406073530] [Citation(s) in RCA: 108] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
Prosocial lie-telling behavior in children between 3 and 11 years of age was examined using an undesirable gift paradigm. In the first condition, children received an undesirable gift and were questioned by the gift-giver about whether they liked the gift. In the second condition, children were also given an undesirable gift but received parental encouragement to tell a white lie prior to being questioned by the gift-giver. In the third condition, the child's parent received an undesirable gift and the child was encouraged to lie on behalf of their parent. In all conditions, the majority of children told a white lie and this tendency increased with age. Coding of children's facial expressions using Ekman and Friesen's (1978) Facial Action Coding System revealed significant but small differences between lie-tellers and control children in terms of both positive and negative facial expressions. Detailed parental instruction facilitated children's display of appropriate verbal and nonverbal expressive behaviors when they received an undesirable gift.
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20
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Gadea M, Aliño M, Espert R, Salvador A. Deceit and facial expression in children: the enabling role of the "poker face" child and the dependent personality of the detector. Front Psychol 2015; 6:1089. [PMID: 26284012 PMCID: PMC4516807 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2015.01089] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/01/2015] [Accepted: 07/14/2015] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
This study presents the relation between the facial expression of a group of children when they told a lie and the accuracy in detecting the lie by a sample of adults. To evaluate the intensity and type of emotional content of the children's faces, we applied an automated method capable of analyzing the facial information from the video recordings (FaceReader 5.0 software). The program classified videos as showing a neutral facial expression or an emotional one. There was a significant higher mean of hits for the emotional than for the neutral videos, and a significant negative correlation between the intensity of the neutral expression and the number of hits from the detectors. The lies expressed with emotional facial expression were more easily recognized by adults than the lies expressed with a "poker face"; thus, the less expressive the child the harder it was to guess. The accuracy of the lie detectors was then correlated with their subclinical traits of personality disorders, to find that participants scoring higher in the dependent personality were significantly better lie detectors. A non-significant tendency for women to discriminate better was also found, whereas men tended to be more suspicious than women when judging the children's veracity. This study is the first to automatically decode the facial information of the lying child and relate these results with personality characteristics of the lie detectors in the context of deceptive behavior research. Implications for forensic psychology were suggested: to explore whether the induction of an emotion in a child during an interview could be useful to evaluate the testimony during legal trials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marien Gadea
- Department of Psychobiology, Faculty of Psychology, University of València, València Spain
| | - Marta Aliño
- Department of Psychobiology, Faculty of Psychology, University of València, València Spain
| | - Raúl Espert
- Department of Psychobiology, Faculty of Psychology, University of València, València Spain
| | - Alicia Salvador
- Department of Psychobiology, Faculty of Psychology, University of València, València Spain
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Lee K, Talwar V, McCarthy A, Ross I, Evans A, Arruda C. Can classic moral stories promote honesty in children? Psychol Sci 2014; 25:1630-6. [PMID: 24928424 DOI: 10.1177/0956797614536401] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/22/2012] [Accepted: 04/25/2014] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
The classic moral stories have been used extensively to teach children about the consequences of lying and the virtue of honesty. Despite their widespread use, there is no evidence whether these stories actually promote honesty in children. This study compared the effectiveness of four classic moral stories in promoting honesty in 3- to 7-year-olds. Surprisingly, the stories of "Pinocchio" and "The Boy Who Cried Wolf" failed to reduce lying in children. In contrast, the apocryphal story of "George Washington and the Cherry Tree" significantly increased truth telling. Further results suggest that the reason for the difference in honesty-promoting effectiveness between the "George Washington" story and the other stories was that the former emphasizes the positive consequences of honesty, whereas the latter focus on the negative consequences of dishonesty. When the "George Washington" story was altered to focus on the negative consequences of dishonesty, it too failed to promote honesty in children.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kang Lee
- Dr. Eric Jackman Institute of Child Study, University of Toronto
| | - Victoria Talwar
- Department of Educational and Counselling Psychology, McGill University
| | - Anjanie McCarthy
- Dr. Eric Jackman Institute of Child Study, University of Toronto
| | - Ilana Ross
- Dr. Eric Jackman Institute of Child Study, University of Toronto
| | | | - Cindy Arruda
- Department of Educational and Counselling Psychology, McGill University
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22
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Sweeney CD, Ceci SJ. Deception detection, transmission, and modality in age and sex. Front Psychol 2014; 5:590. [PMID: 24982645 PMCID: PMC4056559 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2014.00590] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2014] [Accepted: 05/26/2014] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
This study is the first to create and use spontaneous (i.e., unrehearsed) pro-social lies in an ecological setting. Creation of the stimuli involved 51 older adult and 44 college student “senders” who lied “authentically” in that their lies were spontaneous in the service of protecting a research assistant. In the main study, 77 older adult and 84 college raters attempted to detect lies in the older adult and college senders in three modalities: audio, visual, and audiovisual. Raters of both age groups were best at detecting lies in the audiovisual and worst in the visual modalities. Overall, college students were better detectors than older adults. There was an age-matching effect for college students but not for older adults. Older adult males were the hardest to detect. The older the adult was the worse the ability to detect deception.
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Affiliation(s)
- Charlotte D Sweeney
- Union Theological Seminary, New York NY, USA ; Department of Human Development, Cornell University, Ithaca NY, USA
| | - Stephen J Ceci
- Department of Human Development, Cornell University, Ithaca NY, USA
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23
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Brunet MK, Evans AD, Talwar V, Bala N, Lindsay RCL, Lee K. How Children Report True and Fabricated Stressful and Non-Stressful Events. PSYCHIATRY, PSYCHOLOGY, AND LAW : AN INTERDISCIPLINARY JOURNAL OF THE AUSTRALIAN AND NEW ZEALAND ASSOCIATION OF PSYCHIATRY, PSYCHOLOGY AND LAW 2013; 20:867-881. [PMID: 24659903 PMCID: PMC3961750 DOI: 10.1080/13218719.2012.750896] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/03/2023]
Abstract
As children can be victims or witnesses to crimes and may be required to testify about their experiences in court, the ability to differentiate between children's true and fabricated accounts of victimization is an important issue. This study used automated linguistic analysis software to detect linguistic patterns in order to differentiate between children's true and false stressful bullying reports and reports of non-stressful events. Results revealed that children displayed different linguistic patterns when reporting true and false stressful and non-stressful stories, with non-stressful stories being more accurately discriminated based on linguistic patterns. Results suggest that it is difficult to discriminate accurately and consistently between children's true and false stories of victimization.
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Zajac R, Garry M, London K, Goodyear-Smith F, Hayne H. Misconceptions about childhood sexual abuse and child witnesses: Implications for psychological experts in the courtroom. Memory 2013; 21:608-617. [DOI: 10.1080/09658211.2013.778287] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
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25
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Abstract
Lying is common among adults and a more complex issue in children. In this article, I review two decades of empirical evidence about lying in children from the perspective of speech act theory. Children begin to tell lies in the preschool years for anti- and prosocial purposes, and their tendency to lie changes as a function of age and the type of lies being told. In addition, children's ability to tell convincing lies improves with age. In the article, I highlight the central roles that children's understanding of mental states and social conventions play in the development of lying. I also identify areas for research to be done to develop a more comprehensive picture of the typical and atypical developmental courses of verbal deception in children.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kang Lee
- Dr. Eric Jackman Institute of Child Study, University of Toronto
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26
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Talwar V, Crossman AM. Children’s lies and their detection: Implications for child witness testimony. DEVELOPMENTAL REVIEW 2012. [DOI: 10.1016/j.dr.2012.06.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 61] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
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27
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Block SD, Shestowsky D, Segovia DA, Goodman GS, Schaaf JM, Alexander KW. "That never happened": adults' discernment of children's true and false memory reports. LAW AND HUMAN BEHAVIOR 2012; 36:365-374. [PMID: 23030818 PMCID: PMC4128829 DOI: 10.1037/h0093920] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/01/2023]
Abstract
Adults' evaluations of children's reports can determine whether legal proceedings are undertaken and whether they ultimately lead to justice. The current study involved 92 undergraduates and 35 laypersons who viewed and evaluated videotaped interviews of 3- and 5-year-olds providing true or false memory reports. The children's reports fell into the following categories based on a 2 (event type: true vs. false) × 2 (child report: assent vs. denial) factorial design: accurate reports, false reports, accurate denials, and false denials. Results revealed that adults were generally better able to correctly judge accurate reports, accurate denials, and false reports compared with false denials: For false denials, adults were, on average, "confident" that the event had not occurred, even though the event had in fact been experienced. Participant age predicted performance. These findings underscore the greater difficulty adults have in evaluating young children's false denials compared with other types of reports. Implications for law-related situations in which adults are called upon to evaluate children's statements are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stephanie D Block
- University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill and University ofCalifornia, Davis, CA 95616, USA
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28
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Klemfuss JZ, Ceci SJ. Legal and psychological perspectives on children’s competence to testify in court. DEVELOPMENTAL REVIEW 2012. [DOI: 10.1016/j.dr.2012.06.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
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29
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Evans AD, Brunet MK, Talwar V, Bala N, Lindsay RC, Lee K. The Effects of Repetition on Children's True and False Reports. PSYCHIATRY, PSYCHOLOGY, AND LAW : AN INTERDISCIPLINARY JOURNAL OF THE AUSTRALIAN AND NEW ZEALAND ASSOCIATION OF PSYCHIATRY, PSYCHOLOGY AND LAW 2012; 19:10.1080/13218719.2011.615808. [PMID: 24265592 PMCID: PMC3833819 DOI: 10.1080/13218719.2011.615808] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/02/2023]
Abstract
As children are often called upon to provide testimony in court proceedings, determining the veracity of their statements is an important issue. In the course of investigation by police and social workers, children are often repeatedly interviewed about their experiences, though the impact of this repetition on children's true and false statements remains largely unexamined. The current study analysed semantic differences in children's truthful and fabricated statements about an event they had or had not participated in. Results revealed that children's truthful and fabricated reports differed in linguistic content, and that their language also varied with repetition. Discriminant analyses revealed that with repetition, children's true and false reports became increasingly difficult to differentiate using linguistic markers, though true reports were consistently classified correctly at higher rates than false reports. The implications of these findings for legal procedures concerning child witnesses are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | - Kang Lee
- University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada & University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
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30
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Warren KL, Dodd E, Raynor G, Peterson C. Detecting children's lies: comparing true accounts about highly stressful injuries with unprepared, prepared, and coached lies. BEHAVIORAL SCIENCES & THE LAW 2012; 30:329-341. [PMID: 22566366 DOI: 10.1002/bsl.1994] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2011] [Revised: 11/08/2011] [Accepted: 11/23/2011] [Indexed: 05/31/2023]
Abstract
In this investigation, 514 university students judged whether children were telling the truth about highly emotional events. Eight children (half female, half 8-9 and the remainder 12-14 years old) had been injured seriously enough to require emergency room treatment and were interviewed a few days later. Each was yoked to three other children matched in age and gender who fabricated accounts under one of three conditions: lies that were unprepared, prepared (24 hours to prepare), and coached by parents. Participants were at chance when judging true accounts as well as unprepared and prepared lies. However, 74% of the coached lies were judged as true. Participants' confidence in their judgments, age, experience with children, and relevant coursework/training did not improve judgments.
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31
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TALWAR VICTORIA, CROSSMAN ANGELA, WILLIAMS SHANNA, MUIR SIMONE. Adult Detection of Children's Selfish and Polite Lies: Experience Matters. JOURNAL OF APPLIED SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY 2011. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1559-1816.2011.00861.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
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32
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Shao Y, Ceci SJ. Adult credibility assessments of misinformed, deceptive and truthful children. APPLIED COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY 2011. [DOI: 10.1002/acp.1652] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
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33
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Talwar V, Crossman AM, Gulmi J, Renaud SJ, Williams S. Pants on Fire? Detecting Children's Lies. APPLIED DEVELOPMENTAL SCIENCE 2009. [DOI: 10.1080/10888690903041519] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Jessica Gulmi
- b John Jay College of Criminal Justice, City University of New York ,
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35
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Leach AM, Lindsay RCL, Koehler R, Beaudry JL, Bala NC, Lee K, Talwar V. The reliability of lie detection performance. LAW AND HUMAN BEHAVIOR 2009; 33:96-109. [PMID: 18594955 DOI: 10.1007/s10979-008-9137-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/03/2008] [Accepted: 04/09/2008] [Indexed: 05/26/2023]
Abstract
We examined whether individuals' ability to detect deception remained stable over time. In two sessions, held one week apart, university students viewed video clips of individuals and attempted to differentiate between the lie-tellers and truth-tellers. Overall, participants had difficulty detecting all types of deception. When viewing children answering yes-no questions about a transgression (Experiments 1 and 5), participants' performance was highly reliable. However, rating adults who provided truthful or fabricated accounts did not produce a significant alternate forms correlation (Experiment 2). This lack of reliability was not due to the types of deceivers (i.e., children versus adults) or interviews (i.e., closed-ended questions versus extended accounts) (Experiment 3). Finally, the type of deceptive scenario (naturalistic vs. experimentally-manipulated) could not account for differences in reliability (Experiment 4). Theoretical and legal implications are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amy-May Leach
- Faculty of Criminology, Justice, and Policy Studies, University of Ontario Institute of Technology, Oshawa, ON, Canada, L1H 7K4.
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36
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McCarthy A, Lee K. Children's knowledge of deceptive gaze cues and its relation to their actual lying behavior. J Exp Child Psychol 2008; 103:117-34. [PMID: 18678376 DOI: 10.1016/j.jecp.2008.06.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/07/2008] [Revised: 06/17/2008] [Accepted: 06/19/2008] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Abstract
Eye gaze plays a pivotal role during communication. When interacting deceptively, it is commonly believed that the deceiver will break eye contact and look downward. We examined whether children's gaze behavior when lying is consistent with this belief. In our study, 7- to 15-year-olds and adults answered questions truthfully (Truth questions) or untruthfully (Lie questions) or answered questions that required thinking (Think questions). Younger participants (7- and 9-year-olds) broke eye contact significantly more when lying compared with other conditions. Also, their averted gaze when lying differed significantly from their gaze display in other conditions. In contrast, older participants did not differ in their durations of eye contact or averted gaze across conditions. Participants' knowledge about eye gaze and deception increased with age. This knowledge significantly predicted their actual gaze behavior when lying. These findings suggest that with increased age, participants became increasingly sophisticated in their use of display rule knowledge to conceal their deception.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anjanie McCarthy
- Institute of Child Study, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario M5R 2X2, Canada.
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37
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Talwar V, Lee K, Bala N, Lindsay RCL. Adults' judgments of children's coached reports. LAW AND HUMAN BEHAVIOR 2006; 30:561-70. [PMID: 16941237 PMCID: PMC2581473 DOI: 10.1007/s10979-006-9038-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/11/2023]
Abstract
This study investigated adults' judgments of the honesty of children's coached true and fabricated mock testimony. Adults saw video clips of children testifying in a mock court about a true or fabricated event in their lives. They were asked to make an assessment of the truthfulness of the testimony, and respond to questions about their perception of children's credibility. Half of the adults saw children testifying after a competence examination, and the other half saw children testifying without a competence examination. Overall, girls were rated as more competent than boys, and their testimony was more likely to be believed. Younger children were more likely to be rated as incompetent than older children. A factor analysis of adults' responses revealed six factors which significantly predicted adults' overall assessment of children's credibility, and their evaluations of children's competence to testify. Adults' detection accuracy was at chance, with the majority of children rated as truthful. Viewing the competency examination and cross-examination did not improve the adults' detection accuracy. However, seeing the cross-examination made adults' less likely to believe children's testimony. The implications of these results for the judicial system are discussed.
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38
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Talwar V, Lee K, Bala N, Lindsay RCL. Adults' judgments of children's coached reports. LAW AND HUMAN BEHAVIOR 2006; 30:561-570. [PMID: 16941237 DOI: 10.1007/s10979-006-90388] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/27/2023]
Abstract
This study investigated adults' judgments of the honesty of children's coached true and fabricated mock testimony. Adults saw video clips of children testifying in a mock court about a true or fabricated event in their lives. They were asked to make an assessment of the truthfulness of the testimony, and respond to questions about their perception of children's credibility. Half of the adults saw children testifying after a competence examination, and the other half saw children testifying without a competence examination. Overall, girls were rated as more competent than boys, and their testimony was more likely to be believed. Younger children were more likely to be rated as incompetent than older children. A factor analysis of adults' responses revealed six factors which significantly predicted adults' overall assessment of children's credibility, and their evaluations of children's competence to testify. Adults' detection accuracy was at chance, with the majority of children rated as truthful. Viewing the competency examination and cross-examination did not improve the adults' detection accuracy. However, seeing the cross-examination made adults' less likely to believe children's testimony. The implications of these results for the judicial system are discussed.
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Goodman GS, Myers JEB, Qin J, Quas JA, Castelli P, Redlich AD, Rogers L. Hearsay versus children's testimony: Effects of truthful and deceptive statements on jurors' decisions. LAW AND HUMAN BEHAVIOR 2006; 30:363-401. [PMID: 16779675 DOI: 10.1007/s10979-006-9009-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/10/2023]
Abstract
Researchers and courts are focusing increasing attention on the reliability of children's out-of-court statements, especially in relation to trials of child sexual abuse. The main goal of this study was to investigate the effects of presentation of children's out-of-court statements (e.g., hearsay) on jurors' perceptions of witness credibility and defendant guilt, and on jurors' abilities to reach the truth. Child participants experienced either a mock crime or were coached to say they experienced the crime when in fact they had not. During elaborate mock trials involving community member jurors, children's testimony was presented either: (1) live, (2) on videotape, or (3) via a social worker. Analyses revealed that testimony format directly influenced jurors' perceptions of child and social worker credibility (e.g., children were perceived as less likely to provide false statements if they testified live) as well as jurors' sympathy toward the child, all of which then predicted jurors' confidence in defendant guilt. Jurors had difficulty discerning accurate from deceptive child statements regardless of testimony format. Implications for psychology and the legal system are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gail S Goodman
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Davis, California 95616, USA.
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40
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Vrij A, Akehurst L, Brown L, Mann S. Detecting lies in young children, adolescents and adults. APPLIED COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY 2006. [DOI: 10.1002/acp.1278] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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41
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Crossman AM, Lewis M. Adults' ability to detect children's lying. BEHAVIORAL SCIENCES & THE LAW 2006; 24:703-15. [PMID: 17016813 DOI: 10.1002/bsl.731] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/12/2023]
Abstract
Adults are poor deception detectors when examining lies told by adults, on average. However, there are some adults who are better at detecting lies than others. Children learn to lie at a very young age, a behavior that is socialized by parents. Yet, less is known about the ability to detect children's lies, particularly with regard to individual differences in the ability to detect this deception. The current study explored adult raters' ability to discern honesty in children who lied or told the truth about committing a misdeed. Results showed that adults are no better at detecting children's lies than they are with adult lies. In particular, adults were very poor at identifying children's honest statements. However, individual differences did emerge, suggesting that the ability to detect lying in children might be facilitated by relevant experience working with children. Implications for legal and mental health contexts are discussed.
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Kassin SM, Gudjonsson GH. The Psychology of Confessions: A Review of the Literature and Issues. Psychol Sci Public Interest 2004; 5:33-67. [PMID: 26158993 DOI: 10.1111/j.1529-1006.2004.00016.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 287] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Recently, in a number of high-profile cases, defendants who were prosecuted, convicted, and sentenced on the basis of false confessions have been exonerated through DNA evidence. As a historical matter, confession has played a prominent role in religion, in psychotherapy, and in criminal law-where it is a prosecutor's most potent weapon. In recent years, psychologists from the clinical, personality, developmental, cognitive, and social areas have brought their theories and research methods to bear on an analysis of confession evidence, how it is obtained, and what impact it has on judges, juries, and other people. Drawing on individual case studies, archival reports, correlational studies, and laboratory and field experiments, this monograph scrutinizes a sequence of events during which confessions may be obtained from criminal suspects and used as evidence. First, we examine the preinterrogation interview, a process by which police target potential suspects for interrogation by making demeanor-based judgments of whether they are being truthful. Consistent with the literature showing that people are poor lie detectors, research suggests that trained and experienced police investigators are prone to see deception at this stage and to make false-positive errors, disbelieving people who are innocent, with a great deal of confidence. Second, we examine the Miranda warning and waiver, a process by which police apprise suspects of their constitutional rights to silence and to counsel. This important procedural safeguard is in place to protect the accused, but researchers have identified reasons why it may have little impact. One reason is that some suspects do not have the capacity to understand and apply these rights. Another is that police have developed methods of obtaining waivers. Indeed, innocent people in particular tend to waive their rights, naively believing that they have nothing to fear or hide and that their innocence will set them free. Third, we examine the modern police interrogation, a guilt-presumptive process of social influence during which trained police use strong, psychologically oriented techniques involving isolation, confrontation, and minimization of blame to elicit confessions. Fourth, we examine the confession itself, discussing theoretical perspectives and research on why people confess during interrogation. In particular, we focus on the problem of false confessions and their corrupting influence in cases of wrongful convictions. We distinguish among voluntary, compliant, and internalized false confessions. We describe personal risk factors for susceptibility to false confessions, such as dispositional tendencies toward compliance and suggestibility, youth, mental retardation, and psychopathology. We then examine situational factors related to the processes of interrogation and show that three common interrogation tactics-isolation; the presentation of false incriminating evidence; and minimization, which implies leniency will follow-can substantially increase the risk that ordinary people will confess to crimes they did not commit, sometimes internalizing the belief in their own culpability. Fifth, we examine the consequences of confession evidence as evaluated by police and prosecutors, followed by judges and juries in court. Research shows that confession evidence is inherently prejudicial, that juries are influenced by confessions despite evidence of coercion and despite a lack of corroboration, and that the assumption that "I'd know a false confession if I saw one" is an unsubstantiated myth. Finally, we address the role of psychologists as expert witnesses and suggest a number of possible safeguards. In particular, we argue that there is a need to reform interrogation practices that increase the risk of false confessions and recommend a policy of mandatory videotaping of all interviews and interrogations.
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