Work

Maltreated children's understanding of and emotional reactions to dependency court involvement

Year: 2009

Type: article

Abstract: Little is known about the extent to which maltreated children understand what is happening during their participation in court proceedings, despite large numbers of children coming into contact with the legal system as victims of maltreatment. In the present study, maltreated 4- to 15-year-olds were interviewed about their understanding of dependency court on the day of their scheduled court visit. Their feelings about attending their hearings were also assessed, and after their hearing, their understanding of the decisions was examined. Age-related improvements in children's understanding emerged. Also, children who were more knowledgeable about the legal system were less distressed about attending their hearings, as were younger children who had been in the system a longer time. Finally, a majority of children lacked full or accurate understanding of what actually happened during their hearings. Findings have implications for children's participation in legal proceedings and the development of interventions to facilitate children's legal understanding.

Source: Behavioral Sciences & the Law

DOI: 10.1002/bsl.836

Authors: Jodi A. Quas, Allison R. Wallin, Briana Horwitz, Elizabeth Davis, Thomas D. Lyon

Institutions: University of California, Irvine, University of Southern California

Language: English

Topic: Legal and Social Justice Studies

Subfield: Law

Field: Social Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

SDGs: Peace, justice, and strong institutions, Good health and well-being

Open Access status: green

Funder: Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development