Keywords
How to Cite
Abstract
Aim: Ensuring child-friendly justice is a human and professional minimum. This was our starting point when the possibility of developing a training course on child-friendly forensic interview techniques at the Ludovika University of Public Service arose. It is particularly important to implement courses that teach specific interrogation techniques because police officers already spend a significant percentage of their work interviewing witnesses, even though they do not have any special (academic) knowledge of interrogation techniques (Sanders, 1986), This means that this very important segment of police work is also characterized by "learning by doing" concept (Kerezsi, 2020). In our study, we present the theoretical foundations and circumstances of the forensic child protection consultant training program launched in February 2025 at the Faculty of Law Enforcement of the Ludovika University of Public Service, its curriculum, with special focus on the National Institutes of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) interview protocol to be learned during the two-year training.
Methodology: Our article is a literature review, in which we touch on the specifics of child developmental psychology, with particular focus on the characteristics of abused children, interpreting all this in the context of interrogation. What should professionals be prepared for when interviewing children, especially abused children? We also present the NICHD protocol and the circumstances and objectives of the specialized training program that teaches it.
Findings: The starting point for our study was that children – whether victims, witnesses, or suspects – require special treatment in official proceedings that takes their best interests into account above all else. The NICHD protocol presented here fully supports the objectives of child-friendly justice: it is good for police, structured, and respectful.
Value: Non-suggestive, structured interviews reduce the risks associated with vulnerability and increase the value of evidence. This leads to fewer re-interviews and higher-quality statements. Forensic child protection consultant training paves the way in this direction: it enables professionals to simultaneously uphold the interests of the child and the goals of the justice system.
References
Barahal, R. M., Waterman, J., & Martin, H. P. (1981). The social cognitive development of abused children. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 49(4), 508–516. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-006X.49.4.508
Bartlett, F. C. (1995). Remembering: A study in experimental and social psychology (2nd ed.). Cambridge University Press.
Bremner, J. D. (2006). Traumatic stress: Effects on the brain. Dialogues in Clinical Neuroscience, 8(4), 445–461. https://doi.org/10.31887/dcns.2006.8.4/jbremner
Cole, M., & Cole, S. (2006). Fejlődéslélektan (2., átdolgozott kiadás). Osiris Kiadó.
Fekete, M. (2025, April). Tell me what happened: Structured investigative interview of child victims [Lecture]. Virginia Tech University.
Fisher, R. P., & Geiselman, R. E. (1992). Memory-enhancing techniques for investigative interviewing: The cognitive interview. Charles C Thomas Publisher.
Fisher, R. P., Geiselman, R. E., & Raymond, D. S. (1987). Critical analysis of police interviewing techniques. Journal of Police Science and Administration, 15(3), 177–185.
Fresno, A., Spencer, R., & Espinoza, C. (2017). Does the type of abuse matter? Study on the quality of child attachment narratives in a sample of abused children. Journal of Child & Adolescent Trauma, 11(4), 421–430. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40653-017-0182-8
Gabbert, F., Hope, L., & Fisher, R. P. (2009). Protecting eyewitness evidence: Examining the efficacy of a self-administered interview tool. Law and Human Behavior, 33(4), 298–307. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10979-008-9146-8
Goodman, G. S., & Melinder, A. (2007). Child witness research and forensic interviews of young children: A review. Legal and Criminological Psychology, 12(1), 1–19.
Goodman, G. S., Quas, J. A., & Ogle, C. M. (2010). Child maltreatment and memory. Annual Review of Psychology, 61, 325–351. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.psych.093008.100403
Granhag, P. A., & Hartwig, M. (2014). The strategic use of evidence technique: A conceptual overview. In P. A. Granhag, A. Vrij, & B. Verschuere (Eds.), Detecting deception: Current challenges and cognitive approaches. John Wiley & Sons. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118510001
Gyurkó Sz. (2013). Gyermekközpontú büntető igazságszolgáltatás Magyarországon. Belügyi Szemle, 61(9), 27–43. https://doi.org/10.38146/bsz-ajia.9.v61.i2013.pp27-43
Howe, M. L. (1997). Children’s memory for traumatic experiences. Learning and Individual Differences, 9(2), 153–174.
Hyter, Y. D. (2021). Childhood maltreatment consequences on social pragmatic communication: A systematic review of the literature. Perspectives of the ASHA Special Interest Groups. https://doi.org/10.1044/2021_PERSP-20-00222
Inbau, F. E., & Reid, J. E. (1962). Criminal interrogation and confessions. Williams & Wilkins.
Inbau, F. E., Reid, J. E., & Buckley, J. P. (1986). Criminal interrogation and confessions (2nd ed.). Williams & Wilkins.
Inbau, F. E., Reid, J. E., & Buckley, J. P. (2001). Criminal interrogation and confessions (3rd ed.). Aspen Publishers.
Inbau, F. E., Reid, J. E., Buckley, J. P., & Jayne, B. C. (2013). Criminal interrogation and confessions (5th ed.). Jones & Bartlett Learning.
Ivaskevics K., & Pásztor A. (2015). Kihallgatástechnikai metódusok a világban 1. A Reid-módszer. Belügyi Szemle, 63(2), 66–92. https://doi.org/10.38146/BSZ.2015.2.3
Johnson, M. K., & Foley, M. A. (1984). Differentiating fact from fantasy: The reliability of children's memory. Journal of Social Issues, 40(2), 33–50.
Karakuş, Ö. (2012). Childhood abuse and attachment styles of adolescents. Electronic Journal of Research in Education Psychology, 10(27), 645–658.
Kerezsi K. (2020). A rendőrség militarizálódása: Áldás vagy átok? Magyar Rendészet, 20(3), 147–162.
Kostelnik, J. O., & Reppucci, N. D. (2009). Reid training and sensitivity to developmental maturity in interrogation: Results from a national survey of police. Behavioral Sciences & the Law, 27(3), 361–379. https://doi.org/10.1002/bsl.871
Lamb, M. E., Hershkowitz, I., Orbach, Y., & Esplin, P. W. (2008). Tell me what happened: Structured investigative interviews of child victims and witnesses. John Wiley and Sons.
Malét-Szabó E. (2020). Gyermekmeghallgatás a gyakorlatban. In Barabás A. Tünde (Szerk.), Kriminológia MA (pp. 111–118). Ludovika Egyetemi Kiadó.
Melton, G. B. (1981). Children’s competency to testify. Law and Human Behavior, 5(1), 73–85.
Mérei F., & V. Binét Á. (2006). Gyermeklélektan. Medicina.
Milne, R., & Bull, R. (1999). Investigative interviewing: Psychology and practice. Wiley.
Nagygyőr Cs. (2022). A gyermekek kihallgatása a nyomozások során. Belügyi Szemle, 70(8), 1653–1670. https://doi.org/10.38146/BSZ.2022.8.5
Radvánszki R., Fekete M., & Hegedűs J. (2025). A bántalmazott gyermekkel való kommunikáció sajátosságai a rendőrségi kihallgatás folyamatában. Jel/Kép, 2025(1), 120–130.
Reppucci, N. D., Meyer, J. A., & Kostelnik, J. O. (2010). Custodial interrogation of juveniles: Results of a national survey of police. Law and Human Behavior, 34(5), 402–411.
Roskó D. (2018). Barnahus – a gyermekbarát igazságszolgáltatásért. Jurátus. https://juratus.elte.hu/barnahus-a-gyermekbarat-igazsagszolgaltatasert/
Sági L. (2017). A krimináltaktika fejlődési tendenciái, új kihallgatási metódusok. Belügyi Szemle, 65(1), 45–64. https://doi.org/10.38146/BSZ.2017.1.3
Sanders, G. S. (1986). On increasing the usefulness of eyewitness research. Law and Human Behavior, 10(4), 333–335.
Schacter, D. L. (1999). The seven sins of memory: Insights from psychology and cognitive neuroscience. American Psychologist, 54(3), 182–203.
Steller, M., & Volbert, R. (1997). Psychologie im Strafverfahren: Ein Handbuch.
Teicher, M. H., Anderson, C. M., & Polcari, A. (2012). Childhood maltreatment is associated with reduced volume in the hippocampal subfields CA3, dentate gyrus, and subiculum. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 109(9), E563–E572.
Trickett, P. K., & McBride-Chang, C. (1995). The developmental impact of different forms of child abuse and neglect. Developmental Review, 15(3), 311–337. https://doi.org/10.1006/drev.1995.1012
Van der Kolk, B. A. (1994). The body keeps the score: Memory and the evolving psychobiology of post-traumatic stress. Harvard Review of Psychiatry, 1(5), 253–265.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
Copyright (c) 2026 Academic Journal of Internal Affairs