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In a dim light: Admissibility of child sexual abuse memories
Author(s) -
Sales Bruce D.,
Shuman Daniel W.,
O'Connor Maureen
Publication year - 1994
Publication title -
applied cognitive psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.719
H-Index - 100
eISSN - 1099-0720
pISSN - 0888-4080
DOI - 10.1002/acp.2350080409
Subject(s) - psychology , sexual abuse , child sexual abuse , scientific evidence , professional standards , child abuse , mental health , criminology , suicide prevention , social psychology , law , poison control , psychiatry , engineering ethics , epistemology , political science , medical emergency , medicine , philosophy , engineering
The scientific basis for recovering repressed memories of child sexual abuse raises important but different concerns for both clinical practice and expert testimony in the courts. This article identifies these concerns, particularly focusing upon the admissibility of expert witnesses in litigation. After considering the different standards for the admissibility of scientific evidence and the policies underlying these standards, the issue of the courts employing a lower threshold for admitting mental health professional testimony about the same or similar information (i.e. recovered repressed memories) that could not be pxesented by a scientist is confronted. Two solutions are proposed.