What Do Confessions Reveal About Abusive Head Trauma? A Systematic Review
George A Edwards1, Sabine A Maguire2, Julie R Gaither3
1Formerly of Department of Pediatrics, Dell Medical School, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas, USA.
Child Abuse Review (Chichester, England : 1992)
|November 20, 2023
Summary
This systematic review analyzed 434 confessions related to abusive head trauma (AHT). Shaking alone was the predominant mechanism globally, with no significant differences found across continents or investigation types.
Area of Science:
- Forensic Science
- Pediatric Medicine
- Criminology
Background:
- Confessions in abusive head trauma (AHT) cases are documented but lack detailed analysis.
- Understanding the patterns and characteristics of these confessions is crucial for legal and medical professionals.
Purpose of the Study:
- To systematically review and analyze existing studies on AHT confessions.
- To examine the details of these confessions, including geographical origin, abuse mechanisms, and perpetrator demographics.
Main Methods:
- A comprehensive search was conducted across Medline and CINAHL using 36 search terms from 1963 to 2018.
- Two independent reviews and data extraction were performed on relevant studies.
- Descriptive statistics and chi-square/Fisher's exact tests were used for analysis.
Main Results:
- 55 articles from 15 countries were included, detailing 434 confessions.
- Shaking alone was the most common mechanism (64.1%), followed by impact alone (17.1%) and shaking plus impact (18.0%).
- No significant differences in shaking-alone confessions were observed across continents or between medical and police/judicial investigations. Males alone constituted 67.2% of identified perpetrators.
Conclusions:
- Confessions related to AHT exhibit global similarities, predominantly involving shaking as the mechanism.
- Findings underscore the consistent nature of AHT mechanisms across diverse geographical and investigative contexts.
