An Examination of the Synergy of Age and PTSD on Narrative Coherence in Child Sexual Abuse Testimony

In a criminal proceeding, a witness is considered as reliable if he/she can recall in narrative form the events, chronologically ordered, with salient contextual (place and time) details, and essential evaluations for the definition of meanings. This study aimed to confirm the effects of age and PTSD on narrative coherence and to investigate the moderating role of age on the association between PTSD and narrative coherence. Narrative coherence was analyzed in 92 allegations of children (M = 10.3; range: 4-17), who were victims of sexual abuse. Thirty-five children presented the symptoms for a diagnosis of PTSD. Each deposition has been codified through the Narrative Coherence Coding Scheme, a coding scheme based on the three independent dimensions (context, chronology, and theme). Correlation analysis indicated the positive associations between age and context, chronology, and theme; and the negative associations between PTSD symptoms and context, chronology, and theme. Predictive effect of PTSD became less and less significant with increasing age. This study could underline the importance of age and PTSD (and their synergy) in legal testimony of children who have been sexually abused.