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Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons™
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Articles 31 - 60 of 168
Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences
Changes In The Black-White Sentencing Gap After United States V. Booker, 2008-17, Shuhao Zhang
Changes In The Black-White Sentencing Gap After United States V. Booker, 2008-17, Shuhao Zhang
Student Theses
The Black-White sentencing gap, as defined by the differences between the average sentences received by Black defendants and those by White defendants, is an under- research area. In the federal court, after United States v. Booker, this gap has decreased from 25 months in 2008-2010 to 0 in 2016-2107. By using Oaxaca decomposition, I find that the differences in criminal history, offense levels, and pretrial detention status between Black and White defendants are the main source of the gap. The unexplained portion of the gap, resulting from judges finding Black defendants more culpable to their offenses and thus imposing harsher …
Quantitative And Qualitative Assessment Of Interrogation Expectations, Shereen R. Lewis
Quantitative And Qualitative Assessment Of Interrogation Expectations, Shereen R. Lewis
Student Theses
Interrogation expectations (IE) is a construct that suggests expectations of custodial interrogations affect suspects’ Miranda waiver decisions while under interrogation. Prior research has examined IE quantitatively but there has been no prior research examining IE qualitatively. This current research conducted both a quantitative and qualitative analysis of IE using a sample of 335 participants from the United States. This research took the form of an online survey using Prolific (www.prolific.co) to recruit participants, Qualtrics (www.qualtrics.com) to record data, and SPSS and Nvivo to analyze quantitative qualitative data. It was hypothesized that substantial individual variation in IE will be found in …
Disinhibition And Persistent Maladaptive Behavior, Angela T. West
Disinhibition And Persistent Maladaptive Behavior, Angela T. West
Student Theses
Objective: There is an urgent need to reduce overpopulation in U.S. prisons, which are inundated with individuals needing substance use treatment. Research on both substance use and antisocial behaviors highlight maladaptive beliefs and behaviors, while also implicating disinhibition as an important factor. Disinhibition is a dynamic trait that can be targeted with therapeutic interventions. The current study explored the relationships between neurocognitive disinhibition, substance use, and recidivism among incarcerated men. The study hypothesized that disinhibition would be associated with history of substance use, history of antisocial behavior, and institutional misconduct, as well as predicting recidivism over and above history of …
White Racial Identity And Its Impact On Punitive Attitudes Towards Juvenile Offenders, Rossol Gharib
White Racial Identity And Its Impact On Punitive Attitudes Towards Juvenile Offenders, Rossol Gharib
Student Theses
White Racial Identity is a relatively new concept with little to no consensus as to the operationalization of such identity. The first ever White Racial Identity model was developed by Janet E. Helms in 1990. The role of White racial identity has been studied in the context of the racial gap in employment and its influence on racial attitudes, but it has yet to be studied in the context of the juvenile justice system. The criminal justice system is racially imbalanced, with Black males imprisoned 5.5 times more than White males. One of the factors contributing to this imbalance is …
Exploring The Relationship Between Anger, Aggression, And Perpetrator Substance Use In The Commission Of Sexual Offenses, Dominique Rivera
Exploring The Relationship Between Anger, Aggression, And Perpetrator Substance Use In The Commission Of Sexual Offenses, Dominique Rivera
Student Theses
This study examined the potential association between perpetrator substance use, anger, and aggressive behavior in the commission of sexual crimes. The sample included 246 adult males convicted of rape (n = 54) or child molestation (n = 192). Descriptive statistics revealed that 64.6% of the individuals in this sample (n = 159) were intoxicated at the time of the offense. Results showed that perpetrators who used substances at the time of the offense were more likely to exhibit aggressive behavior toward the victim (e.g., weapon use, verbal abuse) than those who did not. Offenders with higher pervasive anger scores were …
Seeking Clemency: A Profile On Jacob Rouse, Jocelyn A. Contreras, Sarah Gabrielli
Seeking Clemency: A Profile On Jacob Rouse, Jocelyn A. Contreras, Sarah Gabrielli
Capstones
Jacob Rouse was 18 years old when he drove the getaway car that would define the rest of his life. He sat in his blue Ford Taurus, waiting to drive his three friends away from the scene of a robbery in Rochester, New York. Jacob was parked about a block away when one of his accomplices shot and killed 22-year-old Herschel Scriven, a local youth pastor and church organist.
He is now seeking clemency.
Development And Validation Of A Multidimensional Scale For Measuring Public Confidence In The Criminal Justice System, Jimin Pyo
Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects
Two studies were conducted with an aim of developing multidimensional measures of public confidence that are conceptually integrated, psychometrically sound, and useful in predicting individuals’ law related behaviors. Study 1 involves two-phased construction of scale in which a preliminary inventory was generated (Phase 1) and then finalized after evaluating psychometric properties based on 304 US adults recruited through Amazon’s Mechanical Turk (MTurk) (Phase 2). As a result, six multidimensional scales were constructed respectively for measuring efficiency-, finality-, fairness-, strictness-, accuracy-, and transparency-oriented confidence. Despite more complexity of factor structures than originally expected, results of psychometric evaluation six scales of confidence …
Wrongful Conviction Documentaries: Influences Of Crime Media Exposure On Mock Juror Decision-Making, Patricia Y. Sanchez
Wrongful Conviction Documentaries: Influences Of Crime Media Exposure On Mock Juror Decision-Making, Patricia Y. Sanchez
Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects
Psychology and law researchers have urged colleagues to collaborate with the makers of popular media, such as documentary filmmakers, in efforts to educate the general public about wrongful convictions (Kassin, 2017; Wells et al., 2000). Recently, programs depicting wrongful convictions, such as Making a Murderer (Demos & Ricciardi, 2015) and When They See Us (DuVernay, 2019) have garnered substantial viewership. Research on general and case-specific pretrial publicity (Daftary-Kapur et al., 2014; Kovera, 2002) and the effects of crime media (Baskin & Sommers, 2010; Schweitzer & Saks, 2007) demonstrate that although consuming crime-related media and being exposed to information about a …
Examining Racial And Ethnic Disparity In Prosecutor’S Bail Requests And Downstream Decision Making, Connor Concannon
Examining Racial And Ethnic Disparity In Prosecutor’S Bail Requests And Downstream Decision Making, Connor Concannon
Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects
Rigorous academic research into prosecutorial and judicial decision making has been taking place for over three decades, but a great deal remains unknown about the mechanics of prosecution. A majority of the work done by prosecutors occurs outside of public view, and most research focuses on the ‘back end’ of the adjudication process, leaving unanalyzed numerous decision points made upstream of the final plea and sentencing outcomes. Using unique data from the New York County District Attorney’s Office that tracks 43,971 felony complaints, this research examines racial and ethnic disparity at multiple decision points during case processing, with a focus …
Juveniles Tried As Adults:The Impact Of Youth Demographic Factors On Juror Perceptions, Denieka Ellis
Juveniles Tried As Adults:The Impact Of Youth Demographic Factors On Juror Perceptions, Denieka Ellis
Student Theses
Abstract: This study explored the impact of defendant age, race and stereotypic crime on verdicts and recommended sentencing of juveniles tried as adults. Previous research shows that jurors enter trial with negative preconceptions and biases of juveniles because they are being tried within an adult venue. These negative preconceptions have led jurors to recommend harsher sentencing for juveniles rather than adults with the same defendant characteristics and criminal history. Crime type and crime severity have also been shown to impact perceptions of juvenile defendants in adult court. However, research has not yet explored the potential impact that stereotypic crime—a crime …
The Criminalized Victim: Can Knowledge Of Trauma And Coercion Influence Free Will Doubt And Perception Of Culpability For Sex Trafficked Individuals?, Megan Korovich
Student Theses
Individuals who have been sex trafficked are continuously being targeted for prostitution and other related offenses instead of being recognized for their victimization. This may occur due to a fundamental lack of understanding of the sex-trafficked experience, allowing for misperceptions to form unhindered. Individuals with these misperceptions then go on to form laws and services intended to aid victims, but instead leave them vulnerable and criminalized. This study assessed whether an educational intervention on the experience of a sex-trafficked individual could influence public perceptions of free will doubt and criminal culpability. This study used a nonequivalent groups posttest-only design to …
Remembering School Shootings: An Examination Of Intergenerational Differences, Kelly Huie
Remembering School Shootings: An Examination Of Intergenerational Differences, Kelly Huie
Student Theses
In recent years, school shootings have evolved from rare occurrences to a full-blown epidemic, causing generations of students to have a realistic fear of attending school. When negative or traumatic events like a school shooting occur, people often form long lasting recollections of where they were, when learning about the traumatic, public event. Hence, the aim of this study was to understand if certain school shootings are more memorable for Americans, and whether differences exist across generations, as certain school shootings that occur during the reminiscence bump period (i.e., between the ages 10 – 30) may influence which shooting is …
Impact Of Think/No-Think Paradigm On Memory For Inadmissible Evidence, Catherine Hackett
Impact Of Think/No-Think Paradigm On Memory For Inadmissible Evidence, Catherine Hackett
Student Theses
Jurors are typically not able to disregard inadmissible evidence when asked to do so by judges. Yet, there is no research using the think/no-think paradigm on juror memory, which could be beneficial for trials in which inadmissible evidence is an issue. This study uses witness photos and statements to see if the material can be intentionally remembered and intentionally forgotten through a think/no-think task in which participants are cued to think about some witness photo/statement combinations and not think about other photo/statement combinations. Participants were responsible for learning pairs of faces and statements of witnesses from an alleged stabbing. After …
Examining The Impact Of Competency To Stand Trial And Judicial Instructions On Ngri Verdicts, Erin K. O'Donnell
Examining The Impact Of Competency To Stand Trial And Judicial Instructions On Ngri Verdicts, Erin K. O'Donnell
Student Theses
Objective: The current study tests whether jury-eligible adults follow judicial instructions to disregard information about a defendant’s pretrial competency status when deciding whether he is guilty or not guilty by reason of insanity. Hypotheses: It was anticipated, because of the effects of hindsight bias, that defendants who were previously found competent to stand trial would be less likely to be found NGRI than a defendant who previously was deemed incompetent but has been restored to competency for trial. We also predicted that judicial instructions to disregard pretrial competency status would not effectively eliminate the effect of competency status without an …
Going Viral: Youth And Sexual Assault In The Digital Age, Anna Gjika
Going Viral: Youth And Sexual Assault In The Digital Age, Anna Gjika
Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects
This dissertation examines the growing phenomenon of using digital media technologies to capture and perpetuate sexual abuse. Focusing on instances of high-profile juvenile sexual assault, I use case studies, interviews, focus groups, and thematic media analysis to investigate (a) how crime, gender, status and technology intersect for young people growing up digital, and (b) the ways technology intersections with sexual abuse to create new forms of crime, new ways to victimize and perpetuate harm, as well as new opportunities to investigate and address sexual violence both through the criminal justice system and in the public. I argue that young people …
The Romanticization Of Violent Male Offenders: How Trauma And Internalized Sexism Can Explain Women's Fascination With Serial Killers, Ella R. Johnson
The Romanticization Of Violent Male Offenders: How Trauma And Internalized Sexism Can Explain Women's Fascination With Serial Killers, Ella R. Johnson
Student Theses
Past research has noted that women are interested in true crime more than men (Vicary & Fraley, 2014), and that some women romanticize violent male offenders (Isenberg, 1991). This study investigated women’s fascination with serial killers compared to other offenders and the psychological correlates of women who are fascinated with serial killers. I hypothesized women’s fascination was unique to serial killers and may be related to safe and culturally acceptable ways of coping with interpersonal trauma. Results largely support these hypotheses, indicating women were more fascinated with serial killers compared to other offenders, and with PTSD, child abuse, intimacy attitudes, …
Substance Use, Neurocognitive Deficits, And Criminal Recidivism, Emily H. Kim
Substance Use, Neurocognitive Deficits, And Criminal Recidivism, Emily H. Kim
Student Theses
Many offenders demonstrate substance use and neurocognitive impairments. Substance use directly impacts executive functioning due to poor impulse control, leading to impaired decision- making. Substance use and neurocognitive deficits also contribute to recidivism. Incarcerated individuals with substance use disorder have higher rates of recidivism, and executive dysfunction has been shown to contribute to recidivism due to low behavioral inhibition skills and deficiency with cognitive flexibility. There is a discontinuity in literature, however, since many studies only investigate either substance use or neurocognitive deficits to predict recidivism. However, it is important to examine the interaction of these factors to predict future …
The Relationship Between Traumatic Brain Injuries, Impulsivity, And Crime, Brian Ramanauskas
The Relationship Between Traumatic Brain Injuries, Impulsivity, And Crime, Brian Ramanauskas
Student Theses
The rate of traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) are increasing each year, impacting an estimated 1.4 million Americans. After further investigation, researchers have concluded that 8.5% of the general public sustains at least one TBI, whereas this number ranges from 25% to 87% in criminal populations. In the literature, impulsivity is frequently described as poorly conceived, prematurely expressed, or inappropriate behaviors. Additionally, poor impulse control has been shown to significantly impact the likelihood of criminal activity, increasing the rate of recidivism. The current study examined an archival dataset of 95 incarcerated individuals from a private correctional facility in a large mid-Atlantic …
The Language Abilities Of Justice-Involved Adults, Talaya Patton
The Language Abilities Of Justice-Involved Adults, Talaya Patton
Student Theses
This study explores the relationship between language abilities and involvement with the justice system across the lifespan. Previous research has demonstrated a significantly higher prevalence of language impairment in juvenile justice populations, relative to the general population. These language impairments have been found across both expressive and receptive abilities, often previously undiagnosed.Further, juvenile justice involvement is a well-established predictor for later adult criminal behavior.However, no studies to date have explored the effects of language abilities and juvenile justice involvement on future outcomes, namely continued justice involvement in adulthood. The current study utilizes archival data on 95 incarcerated men to analyze …
Collective Healing: A Restorative Justice-Based Response To Sexual Abuse, Delene Bromirski
Collective Healing: A Restorative Justice-Based Response To Sexual Abuse, Delene Bromirski
Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects
For much of the last 20 years, the United States has been at the center of the sexual abuse crisis within the Roman Catholic Church. Victim-survivors of clergy-perpetrated sexual abuse have long been waiting for the Church to acknowledge them and respond to their needs. This study sought to answer two important research questions: (1) whether restorative justice can be used to redress harms stemming from clergy-perpetrated sexual abuse and promote healing, and (2) whether there are common characteristics among victims who benefit from restorative events. The study employed a mixed-method research design consisting of both a quantitative and qualitative …
The Freddie Gray Uprising: Persistence And Desistance Narratives Of Community-Engaged Returning Citizens, Maurice Vann
The Freddie Gray Uprising: Persistence And Desistance Narratives Of Community-Engaged Returning Citizens, Maurice Vann
Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects
This study explored how selected returning citizens in Baltimore who experienced the Freddie Gray Uprising of 2015 quelled community violence, stopped looting, and cleaned up the community in the aftermath made meaning of their experiences of the unrest. The central purpose of this study was to collect and analyze the life stories of returning citizens in Baltimore who experienced the Uprising. These men who had been incarcerated for between 5 and 20 years responded to government officials who called on them to quell violence in their neighborhoods that stemmed from the in-custody homicide of Freddie Gray.
The informants provided narratives …
Investigations Of Fraud, Waste, Abuse, And Corruption In The Public Sector: A Survey Of Organizational And Software-Based Aids And Obstructions, Lawrence Kom
Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects
Fraud, Waste, Abuse, and Corruption present significant challenges to the efficient use of public resources and stifle government service improvement by detracting from policy development and undercutting funding for important initiatives. The purpose of this study is to better understand the aids and impediments to investigations of these offenses and provide a generalizable definition for the mission of Inspectors General, the group tasked with monitoring and addressing these offenses. This study also sought to identify the material role of software in investigations of Fraud, Waste, Abuse, and Corruption. Through a purposive sampling, 18 Inspectors General from the federal, state, and …
The Feedback Effect: Does Exposure To Interviewer Feedback Affect An Observer's Perception Of Veracity And Guilt?, Kayla A. Harrod
The Feedback Effect: Does Exposure To Interviewer Feedback Affect An Observer's Perception Of Veracity And Guilt?, Kayla A. Harrod
Student Theses
Historically, assessing deception has been rooted in the belief that a guilty suspect displays signs of anxiety. Based on a suspect’s physical demeanor and other behavioral cues presented during an interrogative session, law enforcement personnel (LEP) will utilize a set of techniques to elicit information about a crime. One such technique is the administration of feedback, which is the verbal assessment of a suspect’s guilt. The issue that stems from administering feedback lies not only in how it is given but also how it is received and interpreted by others. In a two-part study, the possibility of a “Feedback Effect” …
Examining The Use Of Hebephilia And Paraphilia Non-Consent In Sexually Violent Predator (Svp) Evaluations, Nicole Graham
Examining The Use Of Hebephilia And Paraphilia Non-Consent In Sexually Violent Predator (Svp) Evaluations, Nicole Graham
Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects
Sexually violent predator (SVP) legislation requires, in part, that an individual has a mental abnormality which causes difficulty in controlling sexual behavior. Previous research has found paraphilia not otherwise specified (NOS) to be one of the most prevalent diagnoses proffered in SVP evaluations. Since these studies, however, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM) has updated the paraphilia NOS diagnosis in two ways. First, this diagnosis has been divided into two new diagnoses—other specified paraphilic disorder (OSPD) and unspecified paraphilic disorder. Second, OSPD requires an added specifier to indicate the individual’s source of sexual arousal. To date, no study has systematically …
Exploring The Structural Effects On The Lethal Violence At The U.S. Counties Under The Situational Action Theory: An Application Of Multivariable Spatial Regression Model, Yunho Yeom
Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects
Since the stream analogy (Unnithan, Corzine, Huff-Corzine, & Whitt, 1994) and the frustration-aggression approach (Henry & Short, 1954) in lethal violence phenomenon analysis, several scholars have integrated theories from outside of their fields of study to understand lethal violence under a single theoretical framework. Some of these researchers have focused on deteriorating socioeconomic conditions and the collective attributional style when explaining the causes of lethal violence; others have failed to assume the non-independence of observation among contextual predictors. Recognizing these shortcomings, this study integrates the social components of situational action theory to examine their mediating effects on the relationship between …
Law And Society: The Criminalization Of Latinx In The United States, Gabriela Groenke
Law And Society: The Criminalization Of Latinx In The United States, Gabriela Groenke
Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects
The United States leads the world in incarceration with just over 2.2 million people in state or federal prisons or local jails in 2014 (Bureau of Justice Statistics 2016). Although the number of incarcerated individuals has declined by about .5 percent since its peak in 2008 (Bureau of Justice Statistics 2016), the fact remains that mass incarceration is an epidemic in the United States. Over the last decade much has been written about the effects of mass incarceration on people of color, with many analysts pointing to the fear of crime as contributing to the formulation of current policies, which …
The Role Of Eyewitness Confidence And Prosecution/Defense Presentation In How Facial Composites Shape Juror Decision-Making, Rebecca E. Singh
The Role Of Eyewitness Confidence And Prosecution/Defense Presentation In How Facial Composites Shape Juror Decision-Making, Rebecca E. Singh
Student Theses
Eyewitness testimony has been found to be an unreliable form of evidence (Loftus, Miller & Burns, 1978; Oswald & Coleman, 2007; Wells & Hasel, 2007; Loftus & Greenspan, 2017; Jaross, 2018; Wade, Nash, & Lindsay, 2018; Wixted, Mickes, & Fisher, 2018). Yet, this evidence is still used in the courts today, and, in fact, is perceived by jurors as important and compelling in comparison to other case factors (e.g., character evidence, physical evidence; Topp-Manriquez, McQuiston, & Malpass, 2014; Kabzińska, 2015). Additionally, eyewitnesses are sometimes requested to help create a facial composite of the suspect and, critically, these composites are then …
The Impact Of Client's Gender And Culture On Service Providers Strategies In Diversion Programs, Stephany Betances
The Impact Of Client's Gender And Culture On Service Providers Strategies In Diversion Programs, Stephany Betances
Student Theses
Despite the growing rate of adolescent girls in the criminal justice system, there has been little institutional support for empirically supported programs tailored for girls (Matthews & Hubbard, 2008). There is a similar substantial lack of culturally specific programming. Problematically, both constructs have been found to impact treatment (Bright & Jonson-Reid, 2010; Matthews & Hubbard, 2008). This qualitative study utilized grounded theory principals to investigate the impact of gender and culture on the therapeutic relationship for justice-involved youth in seven alternative-to-incarceration agencies in New York City. Elicited themes focused on both recommended strategies and continued challenges. Results indicated that while …
Linguistic Features Of False Confessions And Confessions Not In Dispute: A Corpus Analysis, Lucrezia Rizzelli
Linguistic Features Of False Confessions And Confessions Not In Dispute: A Corpus Analysis, Lucrezia Rizzelli
Student Theses
Confessions are considered the gold standard of evidence, and yet many cases of false confessions causing wrongful convictions have come to the surface in the past decades. Currently, a method to identify false confessions does not exist and studies focusing on the content of the confessions have found similarities rather than points of distinction. In this study, we approached confessions from a stylistic rather than qualitative point of view, utilizing corpus analysis to outline the linguistic features of two samples of confessions: false confessions (n=37) and confessions not in dispute (n=98). Subsequently, we created a model …
Gender Based Violence In India: An Analysis Of National Level Data For Theory, Research And Prevention, Dhanya Babu
Gender Based Violence In India: An Analysis Of National Level Data For Theory, Research And Prevention, Dhanya Babu
Student Theses
Gender based violence is a human rights violation, both the causes and impacts of which crosses personal, societal and cultural boundaries. Various initiatives to address the problem of gender-based violence have resulted in many countries attempting to quantify the extent of such crimes. The purpose of this present study is to examine nature and extent of GBV in India for prevention policy actions. The National Crime Record Bureau (NCRB) of India publishes a consolidated list of reported crime happenings in the country every year. Recognizing gendered aspect of certain crimes, the NCRB maintains a separate chapter on incidences of crimes …