Publication year: 2011
Source: Child Abuse & Neglect, In Press, Corrected Proof, Available online 17 April 2011
Yoojin, Chae , Gail S., Goodman , Daniel, Bederian-Gardner , Adam, Lindsay
Scientific studies of child maltreatment victims’ memory abilities and court experiences have important legal, psychological, and clinical implications. However, state-of-the-art research on child witnesses is often hindered by methodological challenges. In this paper, we address specific problems investigators may encounter when attempting such research with child victims. Based on our extensive experience, we describe strategies to deal with various methodological and practical issues. Primarily, we focus on methods for: recruiting maltreatment victims, seeking consent for participation in research, ensuring representativeness of samples, interviewing children, and retaining participants longitudinally. Regarding recruitment, legal and mental health agencies have helped us attract research…