Page 71 - Aug Sept 2016

A Case for Specialized and Specific Intervention and Treatment Strategies with Abused Children
immediately after disclosure of abuse examination and treatment, along with the
might constitute discrete reactions traditional problem in most witnessing,

that include avoidance, anxiety, and memory. Nader (2001) states that at issue
dissociation. In turn, these then become in younger children are their very age:

foundations for further and longer-term they may have “literal interpretations,
symptom development. Briere (2006) animistic thinking, faulty hypotheses, and
notes that the connection between inaccurate associations.” (p 281) Nader

trauma and dissociation may not be as also asserts that age not only plays a role
simple as it first appears; there may be in perception, but also what details the

multiple components that produce the child attends to, and how the child’s state
dissociation effects, including early of mind at the time of the trauma affects
attachment issues, emotional neglect, encoding of the memory for later recall.

and neurobiological disturbances. And of course, memory of the child victim
Briere also states the possibility that is key to child protection assessments,

dissociation may exist before trauma police investigations, courtroom
and be a risk factor for victimization. proceedings, and to a lesser degree,
Again, this points to possible ethical subsequent treatment.

questions: is any forensic questioner
trained adequately to assess what Leiberman and Van Horn (2001) address

may be very subtle and internalized the problem of the traumatized child’s
symptoms presenting? One might behaviors in relation to memory:
assume, due to the nature and purpose

of forensic examination, the child Traumatized reminders tend to remain
unidentified when they operate outside of
may reveal critical incident material the child’s conscious awareness or when

that was not formerly revealed. Is
there any data to show that forensic the child cannot use language to describe
questioning does no further harm? If what is happening. The child’s behavior

the long term research answer to that may be strongly influenced by stimuli that
act as triggers for memories of traumatic
question is eventually found to be true, experience. (p118)

professionals may be trapped by the
terrible dichotomous question: catch the This assessment also seems to point to
perpetrator, or heal the child? the problem of preverbal memories that

do not readily find verbal expression or
In addition to these complexities, the
age of the child when victimization discernment by the child or the forensic
occurs becomes a factor in forensic investigator. Ceci and Bruck (1995)

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