ANATOMICALLY DETAILED DOLLS DO NOT FACILITATE PRESCHOOLERS REPORTS OFA PEDIATRIC EXAMINATION INVOLVING GENITAL TOUCHING

Anatomically detailed dolls' influence on the accuracy of 3-year-old c hildren's reports of a routine medical exam was assessed. During the e xam, half of the children received a genital examination and half did not. Immediately after the exam, the children were asked to demonstrat e various events on an anatomically correct doll and on their own bodi es. In 2 studies, children's accuracy in reporting certain events was the same in the doll condition and in the body condition. Children wer e inaccurate in reporting genital touching, regardless of how they wer e questioned and regardless of whether they had received a genital exa mination. The dolls increased inaccurate reporting because some childr en falsely showed that the doctor had inserted a finger into the anal or genital cavity. The results indicate that anatomically detailed dol ls should not be used in forensic or therapeutic interviews with 3-yea r-old children.