NCJ Number
163077
Journal
Polygraph Volume: 24 Issue: 4 Dated: (1995) Pages: 297-301
Date Published
1995
Length
5 pages
Annotation
This paper discusses how polygraph testing can be used to determine the validity of the claims of those who allege to have been sexually abused years earlier but only recently recalled the incident due to their total repression of the emotionally painful event.
Abstract
A significant dispute exists among mental health professionals in the realm of sexual abuse of children. Recently, there has been a great deal of publicity and discussion about adults who have repressed for years the memory of having been abused as children only to recall it in therapy. Although clinicians have generally accepted such repression and recall as factual, researchers have questioned the validity of these memories. Because the alleged abuses have occurred years earlier, it is impossible in most instances to obtain corroborative evidence that they happened. Research through the polygraph testing of alleged abusers is the only direct way that a determination can be made as to the extent of the validity of these accusations. Polygraphists are going to receive more requests for testing of this nature from both alleged abusers and victims as civil litigation increases. There is, however, an even greater need for research in this area, and polygraphy can be of assistance to mental health professionals and the courts in addressing this problem. 13 references