What Is Common Errors In The Assessment Of Allegations Of Child Sexual Abuse

Submitted By bkk123
Words: 638
Pages: 3

The article, “Common errors in the assessment of allegations of child sexual abuse” by Eric G. Mart, PH.D., ABPP , was an interesting article, it brings to light not only the complexity of the child abuse as problem but as well, the assessment of child abuse as a key factor the determine the child abuse. The reason on choosing this particular article is that it directly related to the concepts that we have covered in the lectures. Along with a personal interest in investigating children sexual abuse and the long terms effects of such an atrocious abuse in the development of young children. In addition having worked with children and being a young mother, it is unbearable the idea that some of the most vulnerable part of our society is experiencing some the cruelest form of this kind of abuse. The author as a Forensic Psychologist reviewed a large number of tapes of interviews to assess the child abuse. In his article, the author highlights that no interview is perfect. However, he came to the realization that most of interviews that he studied are very dysfunctional in terms of diagnosing the problem and sometime worsen the problem.
The author classifies the problems in terms how the interview is conducted. The first problem he cites is the lack of establishing a rapport with the child and more often approaching them thru an adult perspective of the problem. E, .Mart, 2010 underlines that there is a consensus that child responds best, when the interviewers take time to establish rapport. This would appear to be a matter of common sense; children discussing possibly dramatic events with a strange adult are more likely to be guarded if they are not made to feel comfortable. However the author points out that many interviewers either have little experience establishing rapport with children, or do not attach sufficient value to the need to make the child feel comfortable and safe (E, .Mart, 2010). Furthermore, the author clearly establish the factors that may lead to the lack of rapport, he underlines that the most frequent one is the many interviewers either have little experience or they do not attach a value to the interview and projecting children as mini- adults.
Another problem in assessing the child abuse according to the author is the failure to understand and assess development related abilities. The lack of understanding the developmental issues the author highlights is often assumed that happens only in young children however he underlines that understanding the developmental and sexual stages of preadolescents and