Purpose: To describe social determinants of health (SDOH) in a group of children with special health care needs (CSHCN) planned for dental procedures with general anesthesia (GA) at a pediatric hospital and explore associations between SDOH and completing this treatment in the recommended timeframe. Methods: SDOH were recorded for all patients planned for dental treatment with GA in 2019. Outcomes were treatment completed in the recommended timeframe or treatment not completed within two years of planning. Results: Dental surgery plans were made for 390 CSHCN: 190 were completed in the recommended timeframe, and 119 were not completed within two years. The SDOH associated with completing/not completing surgery were parents (guardian/caregiver)/household, and documentation of social work involvement with the family. Patients receiving optimally timed surgery more frequently had two parents/one household and/or an active social work plan on the record. Those not receiving surgery frequently had two parents/two households, single parents, and/or had no social work plan. Ethnicity, payer, and the need for an interpreter were not associated with receiving timely surgery. Conclusions: Multiple studies have found that social determinants of health contribute to disparate health outcomes. In this study, children with two parents in one household appear to be advantaged in receiving care in the recommended timeframe. Families with SDOH challenges who had a social work plan were frequently able to overcome SDOH barriers and receive dental treatment with general anesthesia in the timeframe recommended.

Self-reported lost memory of child sexual abuse (CSA) can be mistaken for "repressed memory." Based on our longitudinal studies of memory and disclosure in child maltreatment victims who are now adults, we discuss findings relevant to "repressed memory cases." We examined relations between self-report of temporarily lost memory of CSA (subjective forgetting) and memory accuracy for maltreatment-related experiences (objective memory). Across two studies involving separate samples, we find evidence for memory suppression rather than repression: (1) Most adults who claimed temporary lost memory of CSA reported memory suppression and clarified that they could have remembered the event if asked; (2) subjective forgetting was positively associated with accurate objective memory for maltreatment-related experiences. Subjective forgetting was also related to increased adult trauma symptoms and related to childhood non-disclosure of CSA. Moreover, trauma-related psychopathology mediated the relation between non-disclosure and subjective forgetting. Implications for psychological theory and repressed memory cases are discussed.

Adults’ claims of decades-old child maltreatment raise questions about how to obtain accurate memories about childhood events. In this study, adults who experienced a documented child maltreatment medical examination when they were 3 to 16 years old (Time 1) were interviewed 2 decades later (Time 2). The adults ( N = 115) were randomly assigned to one of three interview-protocol conditions: a standard forensic interview, the cognitive interview (CI) with mental reinstatement, or the CI with mental- and physical-context reinstatement. The CI increased accuracy by dampening reports of potentially schematic but nonexperienced information. Younger age at Time 1 was associated with memories that were less complete but not more inaccurate. A greater number of Time 2 posttraumatic-stress-disorder symptoms predicted both correct and incorrect (omissions and commissions, respectively) answers to specific questions and incorrect answers to misleading questions; commission errors were associated with Time 1 physical-abuse status. Theoretical implications and clinical and legal applications are discussed.

In legal cases regarding child sexual abuse (CSA), children have various options, such as to disclose or deny maltreatment. When interviewed in adulthood, their accounts may be consistent with their childhood responses. Alternatively, denial in childhood could be followed in adulthood by disclosure (“deferred disclosure”), confirming previous suspicions. Or the adults could possibly recant. We conducted a longitudinal study of CSA disclosures and denials ( N = 99; Time 1 [T1], 3- to 16-year-olds). T1 CSA disclosures and denials at a forensic unit were compared to the individuals’ responses 20 years later (Time 2 [T2]. 22- to 37-years-old). We found that consistent disclosure was associated with being older at T1 and female. Deferred disclosure was significantly associated with greater T2 trauma-related symptoms. Corroboration and higher CSA severity predicted T2 recantation. Consistent denial was related to less severe CSA. Our findings add to knowledge about CSA disclosures, which affect legal pathways available to child victims.

The accuracy of children's long-term memory for distressing events is of theoretical and legal interest. In this longitudinal study, 3- to 5-year-olds and their main parental caretakers individually participated in a mildly distressing event, and 1 h later the children's memory/suggestibility was assessed (Time 1). Six to seven years later (Time 2), the children (9- to 12-year-olds, N = 54) were again interviewed about the Time 1 experience. Their memory was more accurate at Time 1 than Time 2. Children who were rated as more distressed at Time 1 recalled more units of correct information at Time 2 if the children were older or lower in self-reported attachment anxiety. Children who were older at Time 2 were less suggestible. Time 1 misinformation did not contaminate Time 2 free recall. Theoretical and applied implications are discussed.

When adults allege childhood victimization, their long-term memory comes under scrutiny. This scrutiny can extend to the adults' memory of childhood interviews. The concerns raise important theoretical and applied issues regarding memory for long-past discussions of child maltreatment and trauma. In this longitudinal study, 104 adults, who as children (ages 3-15 years) were interviewed in child maltreatment investigations (Time 1), were questioned 20 years later (Time 2) about the Time 1 interviews. Verbatim documentation from Time 1 permitted scoring of memory accuracy. A subset of the participants (36%) reported no memory for the Time 1 interviews. Of the 64% who remembered being interviewed at Time 1, those who had been adolescents at Time 1 remembered the forensic interview discussion about abuse incidents better than discussion about general psychological issues. Adult trauma symptoms were associated with more accurate memory for interview content that directly concerned abuse experiences but not for non-abuse-specific information. Findings indicate that the veracity of adults' long-term memory for clinical/forensic conversations about childhood maltreatment depends on age at interview, interview content, and traumatization factors. Implications are discussed.

Parents' attachment orientations predict children's memory about distressing life events, such that parents who are less secure in close relationships tend to have children who are less accurate in their memory reports. This study examined whether socially supportive interviewing would reduce differences in children's memory performance associated with parents' attachment. Children (3 to 5 years, N = 63) and their primary caretakers took part in the Preschool Attachment Classification System (PACS), a moderately distressing event for children of preschool age that is based on the Strange Situation Procedure. Children's memory for the event was then tested shortly thereafter by either a supportive or a non-supportive interviewer. In the non-supportive condition, children whose parents scored higher on attachment avoidance provided lower proportions of correct free recall. However, the association was not significant for children in the supportive condition. In addition, higher parental attachment anxiety predicted lower proportions of correct free recall for children of highly avoidant parents, but not for children of parents lower in attachment avoidance. For direct questions, age differences in proportion correct and proportion incorrect favoured older children. Findings provide insight into interviewing techniques at time of memory retrieval that benefit children of insecure parents.

With increasing frequency, adults are coming forward to allege that they suffered sexual abuse in childhood. Legitimate questions are then raised in these “historic” cases about whether adults can accurately remember sexual acts experienced as children. In this chapter, we review the legal arguments, especially concerning the statute of limitations, and scientific findings relevant to victims’ abilities to remember sexually abusive and related events that occurred years ago. Although most memories fade with time and suggestibility about them can increase, empirical studies reviewed here show that accurate memories for traumatic, personally significant, and/or taboo acts can be maintained for decades. We also present evidence that victims often use adult language in accurately recalling childhood events, even if the adults failed to provide detailed information when questioned as children. Although false allegations of childhood maltreatment, possibly reflecting false memories, can occur, we contend that the available scientific evidence argues for case-specific analysis and against strict application of the statute of limitations.