Neurocognitive and legal aspects of child abuse: Theoretical background and methodological challenges

Child abuse is a social issue present worldwide, and it has been receiving increasing attention in recent years. Abuse can occur in many forms (e.g., physical, emotional, sexual, neglect), often performed by a child's parents, peers, and institutions, leaving multiple, long-lasting, and severe consequences on the child's development and sometimes resulting in death. Children frequently have issues giving adequate testimony due to memory distortions (such as false memory), parental manipulation, or inadequate research techniques. Leading and misleading questions in children's reports could culminate in mistaken conclusions, and that's why proper instruments are required, especially for children who are witnessing in court. The legal system is challenged by using a child as an eyewitness in the court since previous studies warned about children's suggestibility-proneness. However, recent studies indicate that children can remember and give somewhat accurate confessions under certain conditions, such as establishing open-ended questions, examining every potential explanation for a child's report, and obtaining proper training. The present literature review provides future studies in neurocognitive and legal areas with detailed insights into child abuse and implications for early intervention and prevention.