Memorandum Of Good Practice On Video Recorded Interviews With Child Witnesses For Criminal Proceedings

First published in 1997, this volume provides an accessible yet comprehensive update on the Government’s Memorandum of Good Practice on Video Recorded Interviews with Child Witnesses for Criminal Proceedings. A wide range of authors with direct experience of the Memorandum provide both an introduction to its development and a contemporary critique of its implementation. This is a unique volume offering a multi-disciplinary assessment of policy, practice and research issues concerning the Memorandum, its role and implementation. It is invaluable reading for all professionals working with children in the fields of child protection and criminal justice.

- Represents the latest advances of the role of psychological factors in inducing potentially unreliable self-incriminating behavior - Chapters are authored by a diverse group psychologists, criminologists, and legal scholars who have contributed significantly to the collective understanding of the pressures that insidiously operate when the goal of law enforcement is to elicit self-incriminating behavior from suspected criminals - Reviews and analyzes the extant literature in this area as well as discussing how this knowledge can be used to help bring about needed changes in the legal system

The Criminal Justice Act 1991 says a video can replace a child's evidence in a criminal court. Such a recording can spare the child from having to recount evidence to the court in person and can provide a highly valuable, early record of the child's account. The main purpose of this memorandum is to help those making a video recording of an interview with a child witness where it is intended that the result should be acceptable in criminal proceedings. The memorandum gives general advice on when and where to make the video; legal conditions; what should be done before the interview; protocol for interviewing children; legal rules which should be observed in order to produce an evidentially acceptable video recording; and arrangements for proper storage, custody and disposal of tapes.

Developmental Psychology in Action looks at how psychologists contribute to the development and well-being of children in practical ways. The role of psychologists and psychological theory is considered with respect to specific topics which focus on child development in the context of social, educational and clinical issues. The chapters are authored by active researchers and practitioners in each field. Each chapter provides an introduction to the topic under discussion and aims to stimulate reflection and evaluation. This is the final book in a series of four which form part of the Open University course Child Development. The series provides a detailed and thorough undergraduate-level introduction to the central concepts, theories, current issues and research evidence in developmental psychology. Developmental Psychology in Action is a course text for the Open University course ED209 Child Development.

Forensic Psychology is essential reading for all undergraduate courses in forensic psychology and an excellent introduction for more detailed postgraduate courses. Expert authors cover every aspect of forensic psychology, from understanding criminal behaviour, to applying psychological theory to criminal investigation, to analysis of the legal process and the roles of witnesses, to the treatment of offenders.