Mental Health Professionals in Children\u27s Advocacy Centers: Is There Role Conflict?

Two recent chapters in professional books have criticized children\u27s advocacy centers for creating role conflict for mental health professionals because of their work with criminal justice and child protection professionals in children\u27s advocacy centers as part of a coordinated response to child abuse. This article argues that these critiques misunderstand children\u27s advocacy center practice and overestimate the risk of role conflict. Children\u27s advocacy center standards set a boundary between forensic interviewing and therapy, which in most children\u27s advocacy centers are done by separate professionals and never by the same professional for a given child. Many mental health professionals serve children\u27s advocacy centers as consultants with no treatment role. Children\u27s advocacy center therapists are rarely involved in investigation, and their participation in multidisciplinary teams focuses on children\u27s interests and well-being