Inter-rater Reliability of Criteria-Based Content Analysis of Children's Statements of Abuse.
The evaluation of children's statements of sexual abuse cases in forensic cases is critically important and must and reliable. Criteria-based content analysis (CBCA) is the main component of the statement validity assessment (SVA), which is the most frequently used approach in this setting. This study investigated the inter-rater reliability (IRR) of CBCA in a forensic context. Three independent raters evaluated the transcripts of 95 statements of sexual abuse. IRR was calculated for each criterion, total score, and overall evaluation. The IRR was variable for the criteria, with several being unsatisfactory. But high IRR was found for the total CBCA scores (Kendall's W=0.84) and for overall evaluation (Kendall's W=0.65). Despite some shortcomings, SVA remains a robust method to be used in the comprehensive evaluation of children's statements of sexual abuse in the forensic setting. However, the low IRR of some CBCA criteria could justify some technical improvements.
HUG, Unité de psychiatrie Légale, rue Gabrielle-Perret-Gentil 4, 1211, Lausanne, Geneve 14, Switzerland.
Gérard
G
Niveau
rue des Eaux-Vives 94, 1207, Genève, Switzerland.
Marie-Josée
MJ
Lacasa
rue des Eaux-Vives 94, 1207, Genève, Switzerland.
Michel
M
Berclaz
Faculté de médecine, avenue de Champel 9, 1206, Genève, Switzerland.
Michèle
M
Germond
D000293:Adolescent; D000367:Age Factors; D002648:Child; D002649:Child Abuse / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic / Q000592:standards*; D008297:Male; D011939:Mental Recall; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D013557:Switzerland
child sexual abuse; credibility; criteria-based content analysis; forensic psychiatry; forensic science; statement validity assessment