FACTORS INFLUENCING COURT DIAGNOSES OF SEXUALLY ABUSED CHILDREN AND THEIR FAMILY - SOME LESSONS FROM PRACTICE

• Authors: Agnieszka Widera-Wysoczańska
• Languages of publication: EN

Abstracts

EN

On the basis of having analysed 50 psychological court investigations with children, ages three to 11, and thought to have experienced sexual abuse, problems of psychologically assessing a child and the method of writing a psychological report will be described. Data analysis was applied for interpretation of the documents, based on qualitative hermeneutical procedures. Sexual abuse of children was reported to the prosecution by the mother of the child on its own initiative or was motivated by the institutions (kindergarten, school, psychologist). I chose to analyze the opinions in which the partner (husband or partner) of the mother was suspected of molestation and also was the child’s father or step-father. Suspects had a high school education or higher and had a well established professional career. Research results showed that some of the problems that psychologists have to deal with are 1. methods: theoretical assumptions on which the diagnosis is based, diagnostic tools, the process of diagnosis adjusted for the child’s age; 2. psychological phenomena in the course of diagnosis: internal processes in childhood, mothers, suspicions, the situation and motivation of mothers, the offenders relationships with the child and the parent; 3. topics for diagnosis; 4. presenting material from the diagnosis.

Keywords

EN

COURT PSYCHOLOGICAL ASSESSMENT; SEXUAL ABUSE; SUGGESTIVENESS; CREDIBILITY; ABUSE DISCLOSED AT DIVORCE; SUSPECT AND THE CHILD DURING PSYCHOLOGICAL DIAGNOSIS

• Publisher: University of Wrocław, Institute of Psychology and Oficyna Wydawnicza ATUT - Wrocławskie Wydawnictwo Oświatowe
• Journal: Polish Journal of Applied Psychology
• Year: 2012
• Volume: 10
• Issue: 1
• Pages: 33-64

Contributors

author

Agnieszka Widera-Wysoczańska

• Department of Psychology, Faculty of Pedagogical and Historical Sciences, University of Wroclaw, Dawida 1, 50-527 Wroclaw