The developmentally handicapped witness: Competency as a function of question format.

Perlman, Nitza B.; Ericson, Kristine I.; Esses, Victoria M.; Isaacs, Barry

doi:10.1007/bf01499014

Cited by 89 publications

(108 citation statements)

References 23 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…This result comports with research conducted by Schmidt & Brigham (1996). 6 ' They found that during opening and closing statements, a defense attorney may capitalize on the jury's biases by using leading questions and pointing out the inconsistencies of a child's testimony. They also found that a prosecuting attorney may unknowingly destroy the accuracy of a child's testimony by asking leading questions, which would only confirm the jury's biases.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 81%

“…For example, the susceptibility of suggestion is reduced when child witnesses with mental retardation are asked general, openended questions 6 and questions pertaining to central actions in an event. 7 Suggestibility may also vary in more stressful situations and when questions are repeated.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…6 Unfortunately, research has been lacking in this area, providing little insight into the memory capabilities of those with mental retardation.…”

Section: Memory Capabilities Of Child Witnesses With Mental Retardationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…5 Glidden and Mar found that providing external semantic cues facilitated recall, because those with mental retardation fail to spontaneously use organizational cues. 6 However, Dent pointed out that while those with mental retardation need prompts to access their memory, their recall may be tainted by the kinds of prompts used. ' 7 Much of the literature addressing memory and mental retardation has actually examined intentional memory rather than incidental memory, which involves witnessed events.…”

Section: Memory Capabilities Of Child Witnesses With Mental Retardationmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

Attorneys' Perceptions of Child Witnesses with Mental Retardation

Nathanson¹,

Platt²

2005

The Journal of Psychiatry & Law

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Children with mental retardation are more likely to be abused than the general population, yet are often denied access to the justice system. Research on children without mental retardation has revealed skepticism as to their reliability as witnesses in the court of law. Even more so, children with mental retardation face the issue of credibility because of their age and disability. This study assesses attorneys' perceptions of child witnesses with mental retardation. Thirty-nine criminal attorneys completed a 33-item questionnaire designed to assess their opinions of the abilities of adults and of children with and without mental retardation to recall and communicate information in the forensic context. Results revealed that attorneys perceived child witnesses as less credible and more suggestible than adult witnesses. Moreover, analyses indicated that child witnesses with mental retardation were also perceived as less credible and more suggestible than child witnesses without mental retardation.

show abstract

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 81%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…6 Unfortunately, research has been lacking in this area, providing little insight into the memory capabilities of those with mental retardation.…”

Section: Memory Capabilities Of Child Witnesses With Mental Retardationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Memory Capabilities Of Child Witnesses With Mental Retardationmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Attorneys' Perceptions of Child Witnesses with Mental Retardation

Nathanson¹,

Platt²

2005

The Journal of Psychiatry & Law

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…For instance, Dent [11] found that ''general questions (as opposed to closed questions) prompt the most accuracy in recall for ID children''. Furthermore, Perlman [12] evaluated the developmentally handicapped (DH) versus non-handicapped individuals in regards to their competency to act as a witness ''as a function of question format''. She found that in response to general questions and free recall, individuals with DH ''did not provide as complete responses as did non-handicapped participants, although the information provided by both groups tended to be quite accurate; both groups, and particularly the DH group, were less accurate in responding to more focused short answer recall questions; DH participants had greater difficulty with misleading recall questions and false-leading specific and statement questions''.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Psychologists’ Experience with Interviewing and Analyzing Abuse Allegations of Adults with Intellectual Disabilities

Faccini

Saide

2011

Sex Disabil

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Abuse among persons with an Intellectual Disability is a significant problem. In contrast to the gravity of this problem, there currently exists a gap in Practitioners' ability to use a recognized and standardized approach to interview or analyze abuse cases when investigating them. This survey was an initial exploration of the practices of a sample of Downstate NY Psychologists regarding their training, supervision and processing of abuse allegations. A primary finding indicates that there isn't a consistently used, standardized method of interviewing and analyzing accounts of physical, emotional and sexual abuse from persons with an intellectual disability. Also, the psychologists indicated that they followed their supervising psychologists' guidance when interviewing and then analyzing interviews for credibility, which were not standardized across areas sampled.

show abstract

Competence to Confess

Oberlander

Goldstein

2003

Handbook of Psychology

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Confessional evidence typically is highly persuasive in criminal trials, especially when it is the primary source of evidence offered by the prosecution. Prior to obtaining a confession from a suspect, police investigators are obliged to provide a Miranda warning if they anticipate the confession will be introduced into evidence at a criminal trial. We describe the origins of the Miranda warning, perspectives on its utility and relevance, and how the warning has changed over time. Recent developments in constitutional law relevant to the Miranda warning and relevant to judicial determinations of the credibility of confessions are summarized. We review historical and recent case law relevant to “coerced” confessions and the credibility or trustworthiness of confessions. We describe changes over time in judicial interpretations of what constitutes coercion and credibility, issues with special populations, and the recent focus in case law on individual factors that might impair Miranda comprehension or that might impair a suspect's capacity to provide a credible or reliable confession. Empirical research on factors associated with impairments in Miranda comprehension and impairments related to the tendency in some individuals to provide false confessions is considered. Case law rulings and empirical research are integrated into suggested practices for the forensic assessment of abilities related to Miranda comprehension and the trustworthiness of confessions.

show abstract

The developmentally handicapped witness: Competency as a function of question format.

Cited by 89 publications

References 23 publications

Attorneys' Perceptions of Child Witnesses with Mental Retardation

Attorneys' Perceptions of Child Witnesses with Mental Retardation

Psychologists’ Experience with Interviewing and Analyzing Abuse Allegations of Adults with Intellectual Disabilities

Competence to Confess

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About