Reading Children’s Minds: Female Criminal Police and the Psychology of Testimony, ca. 1920–1944, the Cases of Maria Zillig and Berta Rathsam

Abstract

Laurens Schlicht analyses the interrogation practices of the Female Criminal Police (FCP) and the epistemic outlines of psychology of testimony. This special unit of the police was established in the 1920s and one of its tasks consisted of interrogating children. Within this context, FCP officers were situated between scientific and practical knowledge systems. Psychologists, social workers and officers of the FCP aimed at intervening in the assessment of the credibility of children’s statements before court. Laurens Schlicht details how psychologists and police officers positioned themselves and what special skills they claimed to have. He particularly highlights the important role of female psychologists. The chapter argues that for FCP the reference to scientificity, empathy and the practical knowledge of the police was supposedly lacking in expert testimonies from psychologists. The chapter argues that the controversy over sovereignty of interpreting children’s minds entailed different self-interpretations. The officers of the FCP unit underscored the value of experience and empathy while the psychologists referred to the values of science and objectivity. The officer of the FCP therefore acted as an intermediary between the practical requirements of bio-political control and scientific, psychological knowledge.