A helping paw? The role of police dogs during child forensic interviews with vulnerable crime victims
Short description
This research project examines the role of police dogs and their potential contribution to strengthening support for children and child interviewers during child interviews. The research is funded by the Crime Victim Fund and is being conducted in collaboration with the Swedish Police Authority’s project ‘Police dogs in child interviews’ in the West Police Region.
The four sub-studies
The project comprises four sub-studies: an archival study of dog-assisted child forensic interviews in police investigations of crimes against children; a randomised controlled experiment testing the effects of dog-assisted interventions; focus groups with legal practitioners on the possible use of dogs during child forensic interviews; and interviews with judges and an experimental survey of lay judges to examine whether the presence of dogs affects legal assessments of children's statements. The aim is to evaluate, from different perspectives, whether police dogs can be used as support in child forensic interviews.
