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Insanity Defense Attitudes: The Impact Of Biological Sex, Mental Illness, And Jury Instruction, Haley Moon, Brooke Mann

Psychology Faculty Publications

Approximately 20% of incarcerated individuals in jails and 15% of those in state prisons have been diagnosed with a serious mental illness, meaning that there are approximately 356,000 incarcerated persons with serious mental illness in jails and prisons alone (Torrey et al., 2014). Today, mental health stigma is widely prevalent amongst society and particularly there is a strong stigma associated with mental illness and criminality (Mossière & Maeder, 2015). Society typically perceives verdicts associated with insanity/mental illness as an alternative for not wanting to take responsibility for one’s actions and as a “loop-hole” to get out of serving time (Hans …

Participant Acceptability Of Questionnaires Impacts Sexual Victimization Prevalence Rates, Raeann E. Anderson, Erica L. Goodman, Emily M. Carstens Namie

Psychology Faculty Publications

Obtaining accurate prevalence rates of sexual violence is made difficult by discrepancies in self-report questionnaires. Thus, the current study sought to explore participants’ perceptions of acceptability (i.e., perceived difficulty and preference) as a potential mechanism of discrepancy between different questionnaires. Participants were 673 college students who completed two frequently used sexual victimization questionnaires, the Sexual Experiences Survey-Short Form Victimization (SES-SFV) and the Post-Refusal Sexual Persistence Scales-Victimization (PRSPS-V). Participants then answered questions about each measure’s perceived difficulty and their preference between the two. Participants found the PRSPS-V easier to understand and preferred it 2.5 to 1 over the SES-SFV. Preference was …

Fulfilling The Promise Of Applied Developmental Science: Is It Time To Reconsider Our Approach?, Steven J. Holochwost, W. Roger Mills-Koonce, Eleanor D. Brown

Psychology Faculty Publications

The promise of applied developmental science is that we can use scientific methods to promote positive human development and improve the lives of children and families. However, the present political environment in the United States makes the creation of research-informed federal policy difficult, even when the evidence supporting a given policy is unequivocal. In this essay, we hope to begin a conversation about how we, as applied developmental scientists, may modify our approach in order to best fulfill the promise of applied developmental science. To begin this conversation, we discuss the potential for establishing long-term partnerships with smaller entities, including …

Trauma Exposure And Trauma Symptoms As Predictors Of Police Perceptions In Latinx Youths, Amanda Venta, Germán Cadenas, Alfonso Mercado, Luz M. Garcini, Melanie M. Domenech Rodríguez

Psychology Faculty Publications

Objective: The Latinx immigrant youth population composes nearly a quarter of all children in the U.S. and are a high-risk group for police encounters. Based on perceptions of Latinxs as criminals, increased enforcement actions against Latinxs in the U.S., and failures of policing and police brutality in immigrants’ home countries, we expected that immigrants who reported increased trauma exposure and symptoms would have more negative perceptions of police. Method: This study utilized data from 107 recently immigrated Latinx youth to examine how trauma exposure (Child Trauma Screen) and symptoms (Child PTSD Symptoms Scale) related to perceptions of police (Criminal Sentiments …

Just Environments Foster Character: A Longitudinal Assessment Of School Climate, Kendra J. Thomas, Josafa M. Da Cunha, Jonathan Santo

Psychology Faculty Publications

Justice is at the center of many definitions of character across various lines of research, yet there is little empirical research on how the justice of contexts can foster character virtues. The current study draws from a sample of 1,865 Brazilian fourth and fifth graders across two time points in 60 schools (42.7% White; 48.3% male). A multilevel structural equation model demonstrated the mediating role that justice beliefs play between authoritative school climate and socio-emotional learning, and the character virtues of bravery, fairness, and prosocial leadership even after accounting for grade, gender, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status (SES). This study highlights …

“He Was The One With The Gun!” Associative Memory For White And Black Faces Seen With Weapons, William B. Erickson, Arianna Wright, Moshe Naveh‑Benjamin

Psychology Faculty Publications

Much research has found that implicit associations between Black male faces and aggression afect dispositional judgments and decision-making, but there have been few investigations into downstream efects on explicit episodic memory. The current experiment tested whether such implicit associations interact with explicit recognition memory using an associative memory paradigm in younger and older adults. Participants studied image pairs featuring faces (of Black or White males) alongside handheld objects (uncategorized, kitchenware, or weapons) and later were tested on their recognition memory for faces, objects, and face/object pairings. Younger adults were further divided into full and divided attention encoding groups. All participants …

An Experimental Test Of The Impact Of Varying Questionnaire Response Format On Prevalence Rates For Sexual Violence Victimization And Perpetration, Raeann E. Anderson, Kelly Cuccolo

Psychology Faculty Publications

Objective: This study examined the impact of a dichotomous versus scaled response format on prevalence rates of sexual violence perpetration and victimization, thus conceptually replicating Hamby et al., 2006 and extending those findings to the context of sexual violence.

Methods: Two samples were recruited from Amazon Mechanical Turk and were randomly assigned to either a dichotomous or scaled response format of the same questionnaire. Sample 1 was used to examine perpetration and received a perpetration specific version of the Post-Refusal Sexual Persistence Scale (PRSPS). Sample 2 was used to examine victimization and received a victimization specific version of the PRSPS. …

Study Title-Based Framing Effects On Reports Of Sexual Violence Factors In College Students, Raeann E. Anderson, Emily M. Carstens Namie, Paige K. Michael, Douglas L. Delahanty

Psychology Faculty Publications

Objective: There are many methodological issues in studying sexual violence, including potential framing effects. Framing effects refer to how researchers communicate the purpose of a study to participants, such as, how the study is advertised or explained. The aim of the current study was to investigate if framing effects were associated with differences in participants’ self-reported experiences of sexual violence and related correlates.

Methods: College students (N = 782) were recruited to participate in one of four identical studies that differed in the title: “Questionnaires about Alcohol,” “Questionnaires about Crime,” “Questionnaires about Health,” or “Questionnaires about Sexual Assault.” Participants chose …

Valid For Who? A Preliminary Investigation Of The Validity Of Two Sexual Victimization Questionnaires In Men And Sexual Minorities, Raeann E. Anderson, Emily M. Carstens Namie, Erica Goodman

Psychology Faculty Publications

The #MeToo movement illuminated vast numbers of people who experienced sexual violence, but the exact scope and impact, especially among under-studied populations (e.g., men and sexual minorities) is unclear, due in part to measurement issues. Our objective was to compare the validity of two measures of sexual violence victimization: The Sexual Experiences Survey – Short Form Victimization (SES-SFV) and The Post-Refusal Sexual Persistence Scale – Victimization (PRSPS-V). Participants were 673 college students who first completed the Rape Empathy for Victims (REM-V) and then the SES-SFV and PRSPS-V (counter-balanced). We found strong evidence of convergent validity for the PRSPS-V with correlations …

An Initial Test Of The Tactic-First And Item-Order Hypotheses: Accounting For Response Discrepancies In Sexual Victimization Questionnaires, Raeann E. Anderson, Erica L. Goodman, Alyssa M. Ciampaglia

Psychology Faculty Publications

Reported prevalence rates of sexual violence range widely in the literature, even in the same sample when using two different questionnaires of the same construct. These discrepancies are concerning as they indicate we may be underestimating the rate of sexual violence and, therefore, resources and treatment for victims. Thus, the current study aimed to investigate two mechanisms that may contribute to differences in reported prevalence rates across the literature and discrepancies within studies: the tactic-first and item-order hypotheses. Participants were 265 MTurk workers whom all completed the Post-Refusal Sexual Persistence Scale (PRSPS), then were randomly assigned to one of two …

Test-Retest Reliabilities Of Four Tactic-First Sexual Violence History Questionnaires, Raeann E. Anderson, Monica A. Garcia, Douglas L. Delahanty

Psychology Faculty Publications

Objective: The present study documented, compared, and contrasted the test-retest reliabilities of the victimization and perpetration forms of a Tactic-first Sexual Experiences Survey (T-SESs) and the PostRefusal Sexual Persistence Scale (PRSPSs).

Methods: 243 Mechanical Turk workers (116 women, 124 men) completed four questionnaires in a randomized order via an anonymous web survey at Time 1 and approximately one week later at Time 2.

Results: There were consistent gender differences in test-retest estimates. When assessing a history of victimization in women, both the T-SES and the PRSPS demonstrated evidence of minimal to good reliability (κ > .61, ICC = …

The Assessment Of Forced Penetration: A Necessary And Further Step Toward Understanding Men’S Sexual Victimization And Women’S Perpetration, Raeann E. Anderson, Erica L. Goodman, Sidney S. Thimm

Psychology Faculty Publications

A unique form of sexual victimization that often goes undiscussed and, therefore, underassessed is that of being forced to penetrate another person (i.e., forced penetration). Due to forced penetration being a relatively novel addition to the definition of rape, there is a lack of assessment tools that identify forced penetration cases. Thus, the goal of this study was to assess the utility and validity of new items designed to assess forced penetration. More than 1,000 participants were recruited across three different studies to assess forced penetration victimization and perpetration. The rate of forced penetration victimization ranged from 4.51% to 10.62%. …

The Effect Of Viewing Distance On Empirical Discriminability And The Confidence–Accuracy Relationship For Eyewitness Identification, Robert F. Lockamyeir, Curt A. Carlson, Alyssa R. Jones, Maria A. Carlson, Dawn R. Weatherford

Psychology Faculty Publications

The distance from which an eyewitness views a perpetrator is a critical factor for eyewitness identification, but has received little research attention. We presented three mock-crime videos to participants, varying distance to three perpetrators (3, 10, or 20 m). Across two experiments, increased distance reduced empirical discriminability in the form of a mirror effect, such that correct identifications decreased while false identifications increased. Moreover, high confidence identifications were associated with high accuracy at 3 m (Experiment 1 and 2) and 10 m (Experiment 2), but not at 20 m. We conclude that eyewitnesses may be less likely to identify a …

Emotional Responses To A Sexual Assault Threat: A Qualitative Analysis Among Women With Histories Of Sexual Victimization, Kristin E. Silver, Raeann E. Anderson, Amanda M. Brouwer

Psychology Faculty Publications

Sexual assaults against women are a leading threat to human rights and public health in the United States. Considering the high rates of sexual revictimization among women and the limited understanding of the mechanisms which fuel this phenomenon, the goal of the present study was to investigate the role of emotion in coping with a hypothetical threat of sexual assault for previously sexually victimized college women. A total of 114 college women with a history of sexual victimization listened to an audio-recording describing a sexual assault scenario and then described how they felt. A qualitative analysis paradigm was used to …

The Predictive Value Of School Climate And Teacher Techniques On Students’ Just World Beliefs: A Comprehensive Brazilian Sample, Kendra J. Thomas, Jonathan Santo, Josafa M. Da Cunha

Psychology Faculty Publications

Substantial research has established the connection between students’ beliefs in a just world (BJW) and their perceptions of and behaviors in the school. While much of that research has acknowledged that the relationship between BJW and school variables must be bi-directional, little empirical evidence exists on how the school climate shapes students’ perceptions of justice. This study draws from a comprehensive sample of Brazilian students from third through twelfth grade (n = 18,514) across 122 public schools in Southern Brazil. Results reveal that school climate variables account for 12.1–19.6% of the variance of students’ BJW, with middle school being …

The Frequency Of Sexual Perpetration In College Men: A Systematic Review Of Reported Prevalence Rates From 2000-2017, Raeann E. Anderson, Kristin E. Silver, Alyssa M. Ciampaglia, Amanda M. Vitale, Douglas L. Delahanty

Psychology Faculty Publications

Background: The prevalence of sexual perpetration in college men is unknown. Prior reviews of sexual violence prevalence rates have produced wide-ranging estimates, likely due to wide variation in measurement strategies.

Objectives: This paper systematically reviewed research findings (from 2000-2017) regarding prevalence rates of sexual perpetration in college men and measurement strategies.

Data Sources: PsycINFO and Web of Science databases.

Eligibility Criteria: Empirical reports published between 2000-2017 that included male participants, available in English, and reported lifetime prevalence findings in Canadian or American college students.

Participants: Data from 78 independent samples including 25,524 college men.

Results …

A Qualitative Study Of The Motivations And Affiliation Dynamics Involved With A Firefighting Career, Michael W. Firmin, Kristin Dewitt, Heidi Gibbs Ellis, Lauren A. Smith, Nicole M. Tiffan

Psychology Faculty Publications

We explored the experiences of full-time firefighters in the present phenomenological qualitative study, having conducted semi-structured interviews with 26 male full-time firefighters. Their personal constructs of motivation and affiliation were explored and, within the constructs of motivation, three themes emerged. First, firefighters were motivated by a love of the excitement firefighting provides. Second, firefighters reported that the work schedule, which allows them more time at home, was a motivation. Third (and most emphasized by the firefighters) was an altruistic motivation to help others. Under the construct of affiliation, the firefighters reported a strong sense of brotherhood with their shift-partners, and …

What Contribution Did Economic Evidence Make To The Adoption Of Universal Newborn Hearing Screening Policies In The United States?, Scott D. Grosse, Craig A. Mason, Marcus Gaffney, Vickie Thomson, Karl R. White

Psychology Faculty Publications

Universal newborn hearing screening (UNHS), when accompanied by timely access to intervention services, can improve language outcomes for children born deaf or hard of hearing (D/HH) and result in economic benefits to society. Early Hearing Detection and Intervention (EHDI) programs promote UNHS and using information systems support access to follow-up diagnostic and early intervention services so that infants can be screened no later than 1 month of age, with those who do not pass their screen receiving diagnostic evaluation no later than 3 months of age, and those with diagnosed hearing loss receiving intervention services no later than 6 months …

The Heterogeneity Of Victim Impact Statements: A Content Analysis Of Capital Trial Sentencing Penalty Phase Transcripts, Bryan Myers, Narina Nuñez, Benjamin Wilkowski, Andre Kehn, Katheirne Dunn

Psychology Faculty Publications

Victim impact statements (VISs) are controversial in capital sentencing proceedings largely due to their questionable relevance to sentencing, the concern that characterizations of the victim may lead to arbitrary sentencing judgments, and the belief that the emotional nature of this evidence may be inflammatory. A sample of 192 capital trial VIS transcripts was analyzed for content as well as a linguistic analysis of emotionality. The findings reveal that these statements are highly varied, including their format, length, and relation between the witness and the victim. Despite a legislative mandate that they address the emotional, financial, and physical suffering experienced by …

Physical Aggressiveness And Gray Matter Deficits In Ventromedial Prefrontal Cortex, David S. Chester, Donald R. Lynam, Richard Milich, C. Nathan Dewall

Psychology Faculty Publications

What causes individuals to hurt others? Since the famous case of Phineas Gage, lesions of the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (VMPFC) have been reliably linked to physically aggressive behavior. However, it is unclear whether naturally-occurring deficits in VMPFC, among normal individuals, might have widespread consequences for aggression. Using voxel based morphometry, we regressed gray matter density from the brains of 138 normal female and male adults onto their dispositional levels of physical aggression, verbal aggression, and sex, simultaneously. Physical, but not verbal, aggression was associated with reduced gray matter volume in the VMPFC and to a lesser extent, frontopolar cortex. Participants …

Positive Facial Affect Looks Healthy, Alex L. Jones, Carlota Batres, Aurélie Porcheron, Jennifer R. Sweda, Frédérique Morizot, Richard Russell

Psychology Faculty Publications

A healthy appearance is linked to important behavioural outcomes. Here we investigated whether positive facial affect is a cue for perceived health. In study one, two groups of participants rated the perceived health or perceived happiness of a large set of faces with neutral expressions. Perceived happiness predicted perceived health, as did anthropometric measures of expression. In a second experimental study, we collected ratings of perceived health for a wide age range of target faces with either neutral or smiling expressions. Smiling faces were rated as being much healthier looking than neutral faces, confirming that facial expression plays a role …

A Latent Profile Analysis Of Aggression And Victimization Across Relationship Types Among Veterans Who Use Substances, Raeann E. Anderson, Erin E. Bonar, Maureen A. Walton, Jason E. Goldstick, Sheila A. M. Rauch, Quyen M. Epstein-Ngo, Stephen T. Chermack

Psychology Faculty Publications

Objective: This study examined patterns of violence victimization and aggression in both intimate partner and non-partner relationships among veterans, and used latent profile analysis to identify subtypes of violence involvement.

Methods: Participants were 841 substance use treatment-seeking veterans (94% male) from a large VA Medical Center who completed screening measures for a randomized controlled trial. Self-report measures were: substance use, legal problems, depression, and violence involvement.

Results: Past year violence involvement, including both intimate partner (IPV) and non-partner (NPV) were common in the sample; although NPV occurred at somewhat higher rates. When including either IPV or NPV aggression or victimization, …

Odd Symptom Network During Preschool, Tess E. Smith, Christine A. Lee, Michelle M. Martel, Marni E. Axelrad

Psychology Faculty Publications

Several different conceptualizations of Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD) symptoms have been proposed, including one undivided set of symptoms (DSM-IV-TR; APA 2000); two domains of symptoms subdivided into affective and behavioral; and three domains of symptoms subdivided as angry/irritable, argumentative/defiant, and spiteful. The current study utilizes a novel approach to examining the division of ODD symptoms through use of network analysis. Participants were 109 preschoolers (64 male) between the ages of three and six (M = 4.34 years, SD = 1.08) and their parents and teachers/caregivers, who provided ratings of ODD symptoms. Results are consistent with one-, two-, and three- …

Prosecutors’ Perceptions On Questioning Children About Repeated Abuse, Kim Roberts, Martine Powell, Kimberlee S. Burrows, Sonja P. Brubacher

Psychology Faculty Publications

The purpose of the present study was to elicit guidance from prosecutors across Australia on questioning children about repeated events. Two focus groups were conducted; the first sought broad feedback concerning questioning children about repeated events. The second focused more specifically on eliciting feedback about techniques for aiding children in describing specific instances of repeated events. These techniques were derived either from empirical research, best practice interview guidelines, or both. Data from both focus groups were compiled because themes were highly similar. Thematic analysis of the focus group discussions revealed three broad themes in prosecutors’ perceptions about questioning children about …

The Weapon Focus Effect: Testing An Extension Of The Unusualness Hypothesis, Curt A. Carlson, William E. Pleasant, Dawn R. Weatherford, Maria A. Carlson, Jane E. Bednarz E. Bednarz

Psychology Faculty Publications

The weapon focus effect (WFE) occurs when a weapon distracts eyewitnesses, harming memory for the perpetrator and other details. One explanation is that weapons are unusual in most contexts, and unusual objects distract eyewitnesses. We extended this unusualness hypothesis to include typical objects used in a distinctive manner, as criminals often make use of a typical object as a weapon (e.g., tire iron, beer bottle). Undergraduates (N = 963) viewed a video depicting a man with a handgun, distinctive object, typical object and action, or typical object used as a weapon. Only the handgun reduced eyewitness identification accuracy relative to …

The Proximal Effects Of Acute Alcohol Consumption On Male-To-Female Aggression: A Meta-Analytic Review Of The Experimental Literature, Cory A Crane, Stephanie A Godleski, Sarahmona M Przybyla, Robert C Schlauch, Maria Testa

Psychology Faculty Publications

The current meta-analytic review examined the experimental literature to quantify the causal effect of acute alcohol consumption on self-reported and observed indicators of male-to-female general, sexual, and intimate partner aggression. Database and reference list searches yielded 22 studies conducted between 1981 and 2014 that met all criteria for inclusion and that were subjected to full text coding for analysis. Results detected a significant overall effect (d = .36), indicating that male participants who consumed alcohol evidenced greater aggressive behavior toward females while completing a subsequent laboratory aggression paradigm than male participants who received no alcohol. We found homogeneity across all …

Empathic Joy In Positive Intergroup Relations, Todd L, Pittinsky, R. Matthew Montoya

Psychology Faculty Publications

Research on empathy focuses almost exclusively on its negative variety, empathic sorrow, either by defining empathy as a state involving negative emotions or by confining its empirical study to the negative. In contrast, we investigate empathy's positive variety, empathic joy. We do so in the context of intergroup relations. A total of 1,216 predominantly White teachers participated in a yearlong investigation of whether their attitudes toward, and empathy for, their predominantly ethnic minority students affected their teaching style and the students’ learning. Consistent with expectations, we found that teachers’ experience of empathic joy predicted better student outcomes and that it …

The Influence Of Perpetrator Exposure Time And Weapon Presence/Timing On Eyewitness Confidence And Accuracy, Curt A. Carlson, David F. Young, Dawn R. Weatherford, Maria A. Carlson, Jane E. Bednarz E. Bednarz, Alyssa R. Jones

Psychology Faculty Publications

Crimes can occur in a matter of seconds, with little time available for an eyewitness to encode a perpetrator’s face. The presence of a weapon can further exacerbate this situation. Few studies have featured mock crimes of short duration, especially with a weapon manipulation. We conducted an experiment to investigate the impact of weapon presence and short perpetrator exposure times (3 versus 10 s) on eyewitness confidence and accuracy. We found that recall concerning the perpetrator was worse when a weapon was present, replicating the weapon focus effect. However, there was no effect on eyewitness identification accuracy. Calibration analyses revealed …

Correlates Of Improvement In Substance Abuse Among Dually Diagnosed Veterans With Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder In Specialized Intensive Va Treatment, Kendell Coker, Elina Stefanovics, Robert Rosenheck

Psychology Faculty Publications

Substantial rates of substance use comorbidity have been observed among veterans with PTSD highlighting the need to identify patient and program characteristics associated with improved outcomes for substance abuse. Data were drawn from 12,270 dually diagnosed veterans who sought treatment from specialized intensive Veterans Health Administration PTSD programs between 1993 and 2011. The magnitude of the improvement in Addiction Severity Index (ASI) alcohol and drug use composite scores from baseline was moderate, with effect sizes (ES) of -.269 and -.287, respectively. Multivariate analyses revealed that treatment in longer-term programs, being prescribed psychiatric medication, and planned participation in reunions were all …

Acceptability Of Aggression Among Children Who Reside With Substance-Abusing Parents: The Influence Of Behavioral Dysregulation, Exposure To Neighborhood Violence, And Interparental Violence, Michelle L. Kelley, Abby L. Braitman, Robert J. Milletich, Brittany F. Hollis, Rachel E. Parsons, Tyler D. White, Cassie Patterson, Brianna Haislip, J. Matthew Henson

Psychology Faculty Publications

The present study examined how interparental violence, neighborhood violence, behavioral regulation during parental conflict, and age predicted beliefs about the acceptability of aggression and the acceptance of retaliation against an aggressive peer among youths. Participants were 110 families (mothers, fathers, and children) in which one or both parents met criteria for substance use disorder. Results of a bootstrapped multivariate regression model revealed higher exposure to neighborhood violence predicted greater acceptability of general aggression, whereas higher father-to-mother violence perpetration predicted lower acceptability of general aggression. Higher exposure to neighborhood violence, behavioral dysregulation during parental conflict, and older child age predicted greater …