The Productivity of Wh-Prompts in Child Forensic Interviews
33 Journal of Interpersonal Violence 2007-2015 (2018)
10 Pages Posted: 4 Nov 2015 Last revised: 5 Jun 2018
Date Written: June 4, 2018
Abstract
Child witnesses are often asked wh-prompts (what, how, why, who, when, where) in forensic interviews. However, little research has examined the ways in which children respond to different wh-prompts and no previous research has investigated productivity differences among wh-prompts in investigative interviews. This study examined the use and productivity of wh-prompts in 95 transcripts of 4- to 13-year-olds alleging sexual abuse in child investigative interviews. What-how questions about actions elicited the most productive responses during both the rapport building and substantive phases. Future research and practitioner training should consider distinguishing among different wh-prompts.
Keywords: forensic interviewing, child sexual abuse, wh-prompts, rapport building, question types
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