Prosecution Rate and Quality of the Investigative Interview in Child Sexual Abuse Cases

摘要

One suggested reason for the low prosecution rate in child sexual abuse cases is the poornquality of the interviews. The present study examined the extent to which a number ofnaspects of interview quality were used by interviewers at a Children’s Advocacy Centrenin Sweden. Furthermore, the relationship between aspects of interview quality and thenprosecution rate was examined. Transcripts of investigative interviews with 3-year-old ton16-year-old children who all reported on sexual abuse were assessed (n = 32). There werenno effects found concerning the relationship between prosecution rate on the one hand,nand interview quality, age, and the child’s relationship with the suspected offender onnthe other. The interviews with older children were, on several aspects, scored as highernin quality. The relationships between these findings and child sexual abuse investigationsnand interviews are discussed