Conducting Forensic Interviews with Children: What Justice Professionals Need to Know

Using a research-based forensic interview protocol is important for gathering as much accurate information as possible from children about crimes they have experienced or witnessed. This webinar will provide an overview of a modified form of the National Institute of Child Health and Development (NICHD) interview protocol. The pitfalls associated with asking compound, direct, suggestive, and leading questions will be discussed.

Participants will learn the following:

How building rapport and providing narrative practice influences how informative children are during interviews.
Techniques to increase children’s narrative production.
Techniques to minimize the risk of children adopting suggested information.
Key points that need to be addressed in forensic interviews.

Criminal Justice and related professionals are welcome to attend the live webinar event at no charge.

Speaker and Presenter Information

Wendy Dutton received a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology, and a Master of Arts degree in Counseling from the University of Arizona, and a Doctorate in Justice Studies from Arizona State University. She worked with adult and adolescent sexual offenders for eight years in inpatient treatment, and in Arizona’s prison and probation systems. Dr. Dutton has been a forensic interviewer for the past 29 years, St. Joseph’s Hospital and Phoenix Children’s Hospital in Phoenix. She has conducted more than 10,000 forensic interviews. She has testified frequently as an expert witness in child abuse cases in Arizona and Montana. Dr. Dutton authored a treatment workbook for sexually abused children, and has written several articles that were published in professional journals and newsletters.

Relevant Government Agencies

Dept of Health & Human Services, Dept of Homeland Security, Dept of Justice, Judicial Branch Agencies, State Government, County Government, State & Local Government