Interviewers’ perceptions of interviewing Aboriginal Australian children

ABSTRACT

Children from Indigenous cultures experience higher rates of abuse than non-Indigenous children, and their cases face extra challenges progressing through the legal system. When abuse is reported, an investigative interview is conducted with the child. The current study aimed to examine interviewers’ perceptions of interviewing Aboriginal Australian children. Sixteen experienced interviewers participated in semi-structured interviews about their experiences interviewing Aboriginal children. Thematic analysis revealed three perceived challenges: engaging the children, communication differences, and obtaining evidential details. Creating strong rapport with the child, simplifying language, and adapting questioning approaches were reported as key strategies to help overcome these challenges, but the interviewers voiced a need for more support and targeted resources to assist them in their roles. This study highlights the need for highly specialist interviewers versed in Aboriginal culture, and the need for future research into the appropriateness of contemporary protocols for children from minority cultural groups.

KEYWORDS:

• Investigative interviewing
• child interviewing
• indigenous
• aboriginal
• children

Acknowledgments

We would like to thank the participants that volunteered their time to partake in this study. We also note that the provided interpretation of literature and results is that of the non-Indigenous authors, and we acknowledge the limitations in our ability to fully consider Indigenous issues and customs. We acknowledge the traditional Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander owners of country throughout Australia and pay our respect to them, their culture, and their Elders past, present, and emerging.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

1. We use the term ‘Aboriginal’ to refer to Aboriginal Australians, who are Indigenous Australians. It was beyond the scope of the current paper to also include consideration of Torres Strait Islander children, who are also Indigenous Australians. We also recognise that many Indigenous Australians prefer local terms that reflect their cultural identity.

2. ‘Men’s business’ and ‘women’s business’ are ceremonies that may last days, weeks, or sometimes months. The timing and practices within the ceremonies differs across communities, but typically only men can attend men’s business and only women can attend women’s business. Men’s business can include the initiation of young boys into manhood, and also involves lessons and discussion of topics deemed to be men’s business among the initiated men of a community. Similarly, women attending women’s business ceremonies will discuss women’s issues. For more information see Holcombe (2018), and Marshall (2011). As non-Indigenous women, the authors acknowledge the limitations in their ability to fully consider men’s and women’s businesses, and provide this footnote only as an outsider’s guide to assist the reader in understanding findings.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Meaghan C. Danby

Dr Meaghan C. Danby is a Lecturer at Deakin University, Australia. Her research examines best-practice techniques for interviewing child witnesses in forensic contexts. Meaghan is also an experienced police trainer, who enjoys running face-to-face lessons on child interviewing.

Belinda Guadagno

Dr Belinda Guadagno is a Forensic Psychologist and works as a Lecturer in the School of Psychology at Deakin University, Australia. She is passionate about her research examining child forensic interviewing training and practices, and about delivering high-quality training to police and social workers learning to interview children.

Stefanie J. Sharman

Dr Stefanie J. Sharman is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Psychology at Deakin University in Australia. Her research focuses on the investigative interviewing of child and adult witnesses and the factors that affect memory accuracy.