The Polish adaptation of the Revised NICHD Investigative Interview Protocol

Abstract

In this paper, we introduce the Polish adaptation of the Revised NICHD (National Institute of Child Health and Human Development) Investigative Interview Protocol (2014). The protocol is an evidence-based method for interviewing child witnesses and crime victims. Compared with the Standard NICHD Investigative Interview Protocol (2008), the revised version includes strategies and techniques for providing emotional support to the interviewed child. This paper describes both the standard and the revised versions of the protocol, presents scientific evidence for its efficacy, and introduces the Polish language adaptation of the tool. The recipients of this methodological instrument could include judges and forensic psychology expert witnesses, who are to actively participate in interviewing child witnesses and victims under Article 185 of the Polish Code of Criminal Procedure, as well as students of law, psychology and criminology preparing to perform these roles in the future.