title: Sketching to remember: episodic free recall task support for child witnesses and victims with autism spectrum disorder.
abstract: Deficits in episodic free-recall memory performance have been reported in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), yet best practice dictates that child witness/victim interviews commence with a free-recall account. No 'tools' exist to support children with ASD to freely recall episodic information. Here, the efficacy of a novel retrieval technique, Sketch reinstatement of context (Sketch-RC), is compared with mental reinstatement of context and a no support control. Ninety children (45 with ASD; 45 matched typically developing) viewed a stimulus film, and were interviewed using one of the aforementioned techniques. The Sketch-RC technique was most effective, improving ASD participants' remembering without a concomitant increase in intrusions. This procedure offers a population-appropriate method for supporting free recall in criminal justice settings.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Chester, Chester, CH1 4BJ, UK, m.mattison@chester.ac.uk.
authors.forename: Michelle L A
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Mattison
authors.forename: Coral J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Dando
authors.forename: Thomas C
authors.initials: TC
authors.lastname: Ormerod
mesh_terms: D001296:Audiovisual Aids; D000067877:Autism Spectrum Disorder / Q000523:psychology*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002648:Child; D019548:Crime Victims / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D061212:Memory, Episodic; D011939:Mental Recall; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D010775:Photic Stimulation