Citation

Lamb NB. J. Interpers. Violence 2017; 32(6): 948-955.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2017, SAGE Publishing)

DOI

10.1177/0886260516657356

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

For more than two decades, conventional wisdom about the high-profile day care cases of the 1980s and early 1990s suggests all were modern-day witch hunts, based on false allegations made by highly suggestible children during an era when society was gripped by a "believe the children" hysteria. Author Ross Cheit refutes conventional wisdom by conducting an exhaustive examination of original data from dozens of cases bearing the witch hunt label. He concludes there was no witch-hunt epidemic, finding substantial evidence of sexual abuse in nearly every case he reviewed, contradicting the assertions made about those cases by what he calls the witch-hunt narrative. Cheit examines the legacy of the witch-hunt narrative and contends its exaggerated claims about the suggestibility of children have had a negative effect on the credibility of children today who allege being sexually abused. This writer examines Cheit's conclusions in light of her own experience as a career prosecutor of crimes against children as well as her involvement in a high-profile day care case encompassed by the witch-hunt narrative. Setting the record straight about these cases is important not only for the sake of historical accuracy and intellectual honesty but also because the witch-hunt narrative's unwarranted assertions about the suggestibility of children have had a negative effect on society's perception of their credibility. Bringing public attention to the fallacies of the witch-hunt narrative and shining a light on questionable tactics used by some in academia to support their contention that all children are highly suggestible will ultimately serve to strengthen society's ability to believe a child who discloses sexual abuse.

Language: en