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This resource presents an argument about how research on child sexual abuse allegations should distinguish substantiated, unsubstantiated, and false claims, and compiles studies and excerpts on those categories. It discusses difficulties in establishing ground truth and summarizes a multisite extended-evaluation study, including its unresolved cases and stated limitations.
This multisite study evaluates an extended forensic assessment model for children whose suspected-abuse cases may need more than one interview, using data from 147 participants across 12 states. The authors report credible disclosures in 44.5% of cases, abuse-unlikely findings in 19%, and unresolved outcomes in 36%, so the study does not identify all non-disclosures as false allegations.
The compilation examines claims that children may disclose abuse in pieces or across repeated conversations, alongside concerns about changing or inconsistent accounts. It summarizes research describing disclosure as varied and sometimes prompted, indirect, withheld, or gradual, and includes critiques that question how these categories and supporting studies should be interpreted.
The resource presents a five-stage account of alleged perpetrators’ process of victimization, from selecting and engaging a child through grooming, assault, and concealment. It describes the cited research base and critiques how the five stages relate to earlier studies, including a small interview study that identified overlapping processes rather than a single pattern.
The source summarizes reasons children may delay disclosing abuse, including limited understanding, fear of disbelief or family disruption, threats, shame, and loyalty to the alleged perpetrator. It also reviews a small qualitative study in which children described feared consequences and disclosure triggers, while noting limited corroboration and possible influence from adults around them.
Wendy Dutton’s short summary describes reasons children may purposefully disclose abuse, including seeking to stop it or obtain emotional support, and notes that some disclose after they feel safer. It lists research citations associated with the summary.
This short resource discusses circumstances associated in cited literature with children recanting reports of abuse, including limited support and negative consequences after disclosure. It identifies research citations and is part of a February 2022 document titled “Areas of Inquiry and Summary for Expert Testimony and Supporting Research Citations.”
This summary describes tactics children may use to avoid discussing difficult or embarrassing details during forensic interviews, including changing subjects, avoiding questions, or declining to answer. It cites three sources related to these behaviors.
Wendy Dutton’s summary distinguishes script memory, concerning repeated-event patterns, from episodic memory for a particular event, and describes how schemas can shape attention and interpretation. It lists research on script memory, repeated events, and children’s reports, along with general primacy and recency principles.
This brief resource says exploratory sexual behavior is common in young children and lists several behaviors it describes as more common among children with a history of sexual abuse. It cites Friedrich and colleagues (2001) and is attributed to a February 2022 research-citation document.
