Maternal Maltreatment as a Context for Mother-Child Conversations and Children's Reports of Experienced and Nonexperienced Abuse

Comments on the article by G. F. Principe and K. London (see record 2023-02505-001), which established that mother–child conversations about sexual abuse present a significant challenge for maltreatment investigations. In this commentary, the author expands upon the review by Principe and London by adopting an approach of developmental psychopathology. She emphasizes the interface of typical and atypical processes in considering the quality of mother–child relationships as a critical context that shapes mother–child conversations and children’s reports for experienced and nonexperienced abuse. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)