SPECIFIC CHALLENGES OF WITNESS SUPPORT ASSOCIATES IN CONTACT WITH WITNESSES AND VICTIMS DURING THE CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC

Abstract

The pandemic COVID-19 has affected all functioning spheres: family organization, school closures, workplaces, and public places. In Bosnia and Herzegovina, the coronavirus pandemic affected changes in people's everyday life. Epidemiological measures were introduced to spread the infection and prevent the disease. Among other things, the work of judicial institutions was hampered; the testimony of witnesses and victims in criminal cases was difficult too. A better understanding of the specific experiences faced by witness support staff at the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina during the coronavirus pandemic in communicating with witnesses and victims could be helpful to professionals in dealing with similar situations in a specific context. This study investigates how much the pandemic affected the contacts, motivation, and mental health of persons who, in the period after the outbreak of the pandemic, were called witnesses in the cases processed before the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina during the 2020 and 2021 year.

Keywords

• coronavirus
• pandemic
• witness
• victim

References

1. Back, A., Tulsky, J. A. & Arnold, R. M. (2020). Communication Skills in the Age of COVID-19, Annals of Internal Medicine; Ideas and Opinions.
2. Center for the Study of Traumatic Stress www.CSTSonline.org . (2020). Psychological Effects of Quarantine During the Coronavirus Outbreak: What Healthcare Providers Need to Know? (Accessed: 10.02.2023).
3. Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina (2012). Regulations on the work of the Witness Support Department. (internal document, available upon request).