Citation

Everson MD. Child Maltreat. 1997; 2(2): 134-149.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1997, American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children, Publisher SAGE Publishing)

DOI

10.1177/1077559597002002007

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Children's accounts of abuse sometimes contain descriptions of events that seem bizarre, improbable, or even impossible. This article contributes to an objective analysis of child allegations of abuse by offering 24 possible explanations (with illustrative case examples) for such statements. The central thesis of this discussion is that the existence of improbable or fantastic elements in a child's account should not result in an automatic dismissal of the child's report without consideration of the possible mechanisms underlying the fantastic material.

Language: en