The susceptibility of child witnesses to suggestion

This article deals with the reliability of child witnesses, in particular from the viewpoint that child witnesses should be treated with suspicion because their memories are very susceptible to suggestion. An experiment is reported, in which grade 3, grade 6, and college students were compared on their ability to recall events from a film, in the face of (mis)leading questions from an interrogator. The data showed that the grade 6 students were equal to the college students in memory capacity and in their ability to resist suggestion. The grade 3 students were inferior to the older subjects in these areas. However, the results from a second testing session led to the conclusion that although the younger children appeared to submit to suggestion much more readily than the older subjects, the effect of suggestion on actual memory was not significantly different for the three subject-groups. The implications of these findings are discussed with reference to the present status of child witnesses in Anglo-Saxon law systems.     

Fragmented pathways to care: the experiences of suicidal men

Using qualitative methods, this study examined how, and under what circumstances, suicidal men used mental health services. In particular, the analyses focused on fragmented pathways to care. Fifteen men with a history of suicidal and aggressive behaviors and a diagnosis of borderline personality disorder and/or antisocial personality disorder participated in semistructured interviews that consisted of questions about their mental health status and experiences with mental health and addiction services. Interviews were taped and transcribed. An iterative, inductive qualitative analytic process was used. Men followed a cyclical pattern wherein negative experiences with health care providers were said to be followed by avoidance of health care settings, crisis, and then by involuntary service utilization. Men identified five health care provider and three personal practices, and two types of episodes they believed to contribute to their fragmented pathways to care. Implementation of specialized interventions, and providing patients with more information and more opportunity to participate in decisions, may improve interactions between patients and providers and improve patients' mental health status.