The usefulness of the criteria-based content analysis technique in distinguishing between truthful and fabricated allegations - A critical review

The Criteria-Based Content Analysis (CBCA) technique was developed to distinguish children's truthful from fabricated allegations. Research results suggest some use for the procedure, but many important theoretical and empirical issues remain unresolved, including wide differences in the apparent usefulness of individual CBCA criteria, inconsistencies in the number of criteria used, and the absence of decision rules for evaluating an individual child. Other issues include the effect of the child's age and cultural background, motivation to lie, being coached to lie, and belief in the validity of a false memory. Although the CBCA technique shows some promise in enabling raters to differentiate true from false statements, the authors conclude that the presentation of expert testimony derived from CBCA analyses of an individual child would be premature and unwarranted.