Ann D. Poole: Interviewing Children: The Science of Conversation in Forensic Contexts

Excerpt

Interviewing Children: The Science of Conversation in Forensic Contexts by Debra Ann Poole is a broad look at the science of forensic interviews. Due to their incomplete language and social development, children face an increased risk of retrieving false information as a result of memory cues. Further, children experience an increased desire to please authority figures, which often includes telling interviewers what they want to hear. Poole explains these risks and provides evidence of best practices, sample interview dialogues, as well as recommendations for increasing the reliability of child interviews. This book was written by a forensic psychologist for others working in the field and focuses on real, research-based methodologies for improving interviews with children. The book attempts to answer how evidence-based behavioral therapy can reduce ambiguities that permeate adult–child forensic interviews. The book is both comprehensive and approachable in its evaluation of the topic. Poole thoroughly examines the goals, types of studies, characteristics of forensic versus clinical roles, conventional content, and case-specific decisions and moves interviewers make to customized interviews, offering an in-depth examination into the science of child interviews. …