Sexual abuse of children has been recognized as a major problem. Attempts have been made to elicit descriptions of the abuse of children. A variety of interview methods for obtaining descriptions have been used. Methods of interviewing depend on the age of the child, the purpose of the interview, and the training and philosophy of the interviewer. Children over 12 years of age usually are capable of disclosing abuse verbally. The use of fantasy play and of structured play, using dolls, are most important in interviewing children under the age of 5 years. The use of play materials lends itself to the re-enactment of the abusive experience, and is a more reliable and natural method of interviewing young children. An advantage to using Anatomically Correct Dolls (ACDs) is that children can provide their own names for body parts and demonstrate exact behaviors in which they have participated. This elicits accurate recall without contaminating the interview with too many leading questions. The primary disadvantage is that most interviewers have little or no training in the use of the dolls, and have limited knowledge of child development and child behavior. Additional disadvantages stem from possible exposure of children to adult videos and adult cable television media. It is difficult to determine whether a child's knowledge about sex is gained from experience or other sources. (LLL)