U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government, Department of Justice.

NCJRS Virtual Library

The Virtual Library houses over 235,000 criminal justice resources, including all known OJP works.
Click here to search the NCJRS Virtual Library

Incest Accusation: Assessing Credibility

NCJ Number
106888
Journal
Journal of Psychiatry and Law Volume: 11 Issue: 3 Dated: (Fall 1983) Pages: 305-317
Author(s)
E H Weiss
Date Published
1983
Length
13 pages
Annotation
This article explores methods of interviewing and techniques of assessing child incest victims' credibility through detailed clinical case studies and data collected from direct observation and inquiry of the children themselves.
Abstract
The methodology is designed to elicit emotions connected to the alleged assault, which form an integral part of the credibility criteria used by the author. Comparison between the child's direct statements about being sexually abused and the level of cognitive and psychosocial development attained by the child forms another critical factor in differentiating fact from fantasy of children. (Publisher abstract)