Researchers have identified a source of miscommunication known as the pseudotemporal problem, whereby children mistakenly interpret non-temporal invitations including the word “time” (e.g., “Tell me about the last time”) as requests for temporal information. Researchers have suggested these miscommunications may be particularly problematic when children respond to the request with simple “I don’t know” (IDK) responses because the misinterpretation could go undetected. Factfinders may interpret the child’s IDK response as indicating an inability or unwillingness to provide information, rather than simple confusion. The present study examined 352 adult participants’ ability to detect the pseudotemoral problem across 12 invitation/reponse pairs embedded within a mock forensic interview. Results revealed that participants rarely identified the pseudotemporal problem, especially in cases where children’s IDK response was unelaborated. Additionally, their ability to detect the pseudotemporal problem was significantly related to their reasoning for why children provided IDK responses.

Event boundaries, which mark when an event begins and ends, help us make sense of our current experiences, predict what will happen next, and recall information about our experiences later. However, we know children struggle to create boundaries without salient cues, including intentionality. Event boundary formation may be particularly important for interviewing children regarding maltreatment because some information requires reporting on sub-elements of a larger event. Therefore, we examined how intentionality (i.e., labels and goal-directed instructions) during the event and at recall affects preschool-aged children’s memory reports for a treasure hunt event. We hypothesized that children in the intentionality condition would have a more complete report of the event to open-ended and direct prompts (e.g., what happened first/in the middle/last) and would report the end goal (i.e., unlocking the treasure chest) as most important. Preliminary results (N=45, data collection on-going) reveal trends suggesting benefits of intentionality for children’s recall.

Research has established best practices for questioning children, but little is known about how adherence to these practices affects adults’ perceptions of child witnesses’ credibility. Two studies were conducted to examine how lawyer questioning practices impact credibility perceptions. Study One used mock transcripts that manipulated question type (appropriate/inappropriate) and child response elaboration (elaborated/not elaborated). Results suggest that adults may not be sensitive to questioning style and whether case details come from lawyers (inappropriate questions) or children (their responses). Study Two clarifies these results by using court transcript excerpts modified to adhere to Study One conditions and adding the manipulation of child details (equal to lawyer /added details). The detail condition clarifies if perceptions are impacted by the amount of detail or who is providing details. Data collection for Study Two is currently underway (N=1000). Together, these studies aim to clarify how lawyer questioning practices influence perceptions of child witness credibility.

Registered Intermediaries (RIs) support the communication of vulnerable witnesses in the Criminal Justice System (England and Wales), making recommendations to adapt processes based on the witness’s communication needs. Yet no research has examined RI experiences of facilitating communication during Police Identification Procedures (PIP) and few have explored how the process can be adapted for children in line with PACE-D guidelines. This study aimed to understand which adaptations RIs recommend when supporting a child during a PIP, and why. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with RIs who have supported children during PIPs. The findings revealed that RIs address language complexity, use alternative witness preparation methods, and use visual aids to support memory and attention. Future research will experimentally test these adaptations to assess their impact on child identification performance. These findings will highlight how RIs and police can support the communication of child witnesses to maximise their ability to make correct identifications.