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Updated: Jun 17, 2026
Examining Recall Memory in Infancy and Early Childhood Using the Elicited Imitation Paradigm
Published on: April 28, 2016
Human figure drawings and children's recall of touching
1Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA. mbruck1@jhmi.edu
Insights
Children
Area of Science:
- Child Psychology
- Memory Studies
- Forensic Psychology
Background:
- Accurate recall of events is crucial in legal and therapeutic settings.
- Children's memory recall abilities are influenced by various factors, including interview techniques.
- Human Figure Drawings (HFDs) are sometimes used to aid children's recall.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the impact of Human Figure Drawings (HFDs) on children's recall of tactile events.
- To compare immediate versus delayed recall of touching experiences in young children.
- To explore cognitive mechanisms underlying children's memory for touch.
Main Methods:
- Two studies involved children aged 3-7 recalling staged touching events.
- Recall interviews were conducted immediately (Study 2) and 1 week later (Study 1).
- Children were interviewed using Human Figure Drawings (HFDs) and verbal questioning, in varied orders.
Main Results:
- Human Figure Drawings (HFDs) led to more errors when used after verbal questioning.
- Children demonstrated poor recall of touches, even when interviewed shortly after the event.
- Recall accuracy was low regardless of whether HFDs or verbal methods were used.
Conclusions:
- Children's memory for tactile experiences is limited, irrespective of interview method.
- Using Human Figure Drawings (HFDs) after verbal questioning may introduce inaccuracies.
- Cognitive factors related to memory and semantics likely contribute to poor recall of touch in children.
Abstract:
In 2 studies, children ages 3 to 7 years were asked to recall a series of touches that occurred during a previous staged event. The recall interview took place 1 week after the event in Study 1 and immediately after the event in Study 2. Each recall interview had 2 sections: In 1 section, children were given human figure drawings (HFDs) and were asked to show where the touching took place; in the other section, the same questions were asked without the HFDs (verbal condition). Children were randomly assigned to 2 different conditions: HFD 1st/verbal 2nd or verbal 1st/HFD 2nd. There were 2 major findings. First, HFDs elicited more errors than the verbal condition when used to probe for information that the child had already been asked. Second, regardless of interview method, children had poor recall of the touches even when these occurred minutes before the interview. It is suggested that cognitive mechanisms involving memory and semantics underlie children's poor recall of touching in both verbal and HFD conditions.
