Transcript of forensic interviews with 98 alleged victims of child sex
ual abuse were scored for the presence or absence of certain criteria
believed to be more characteristic of accounts concerning experienced
than nonexperienced events. Other information regarding the events was
independently evaluated by individuals unfamiliar with the children's
accounts. As predicted, more of the CBCA criteria were present in acc
ounts independently rated as Likely or Very Likely to have occurred (M
= 6.74) than in accounts of events deemed Unlikely or Very Unlikely t
o have occurred (M = 4.85). In addition, several of the criteria were
helpful in distinguishing between plausible and implausible accounts.
The group differences were not as dramatic as those reported in earlie
r studies, however, and the results suggest caution regarding forensic
application of the CBCA system.