Peer Social Structure and Risk-Taking Behaviors Among African American Early Adolescents

This study investigated associations between peer status, peer group social influences, and risk-taking behaviors in an urban sample of 647 African American seventh-grade students. The highest rates of problem behaviors were seen in the controversial peer status group, or those youth who were both highly liked and highly disliked by other youth. Findings also revealed contrasting patterns of peer group leadership. The more conventional, positive leadership style predicted lower rates, and the less mainstream, unconventional style predicted higher rates of involvement in problem behaviors. Conventional leaders were most likely to be popular status youth, while unconventional leaders were mostly to be both controversial and popular status youth. Controversial status youth were also more likely to be involved in deviant peer groups. Results highlight the importance of controversial status students as key influence agents during early adolescence. We discuss the implications of these results for preventive interventions to reduce adolescent problem behaviors.     

Fiscal consequences of public corruption: Empirical evidence from state bond ratings

Empirical analyses of public corruption focus predominantly on international differences; regional differences in public corruption within a single country receive little attention. We empirically investigate the effect of public corruption in the United States on state bond ratings, which previous research shows are inversely related to net interest costs on public debt. After controlling for various economic influences on bond ratings, we find that more corrupt states have lower bond ratings, which implies that taxpayers in more corrupt states face a negative pecuniary externality by paying a premium for debt.     

A Multiple Streams Analysis of Institutional Innovation in Forest Watershed Governance

Increasingly severe wildfires have focused attention on forested watershed vulnerabilities, causing significant changes to policies and governance. We utilized the Multiple Streams Approach (MSA) to understand institutional innovations of federal agency–large water provider partnerships in Colorado to protect watersheds through joint planning and funding. Ambiguous problem definition and focusing events were significant aspects of these partnerships. We interviewed individuals in the partnerships, with MSA ideas of how solutions to policy problems develop, and the role of policy entrepreneurs. We found that wildfires served as focusing events, creating space and time for learning, collaboration and new problem framing, increased political attention, and institutional innovation. In this study, windows of opportunity stayed open longer, policy entrepreneurs and agencies played larger roles in communication and coupling streams and the context of fast‐moving, unpredictable ecological crises changed responses to issues. Our findings also have implications for broader policy studies and environmental governance scholarship.     

When presidential candidates voice party issues,does Twitter listen?

ABSTRACT

Presidential candidates often speak to their party’s issues because parties are thought to have “greater competence on handling” some issues versus others [Petrocik 1996, “Issue Ownership in Presidential Elections, with a 1980 Case Study.” American Journal of Political Science 40 (3): 825–850, 825]. The present study considers whether Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump tend to use different vocal inflections when talking about their party’s issues. Using the audio from the three 2016 presidential debates, we not only find Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump seem to be more emotionally invested in their party’s issues, but they use distinct vocal patterns which suggest they “own” some issues more than others. To assess whether viewers responded more positively to these different vocal inflections, we used the valence of 428,185 live-tweets. Ultimately, we found Twitter was net-positive when the candidates raised their vocal pitch while talking about their party’s issues. This suggests nonverbal cues are an important component of issue ownership.     

An evaluation of measurement uncertainty of trajectory angles using a 3D laser scanner

Measuring trajectory angles of bullet defects at a crime scene is an important part of crime scene investigation as these angles can be used for shooting incident reconstructions. The Washington State Patrol Crime Scene Response Team (WSP CSRT) had a desire to report and use measured trajectory angles. To report quantitative measurements, a statement of uncertainty for the measurement must also be reported due to an accreditation requirement through the ANSI National Accreditation Board (ANAB), through which the WSP CSRT is accredited. This evaluation examined the measurement uncertainty of the 3D laser scanning method that the WSP CSRT utilizes for measuring the vertical and azimuth angles from trajectory rods fitted to bullet defects. Three studies were performed which examined the variation of vertical and azimuth angle measurements from trajectory rods on flat surfaces, the variation of azimuth angle measurements from a trajectory rod on a curved surface, and a traceability study with known vertical and azimuth angle measurements. Seven common substrates were selected as target materials and were shot with 9 mm Luger and 0.45 Auto caliber bullets. A vehicle with one bullet defect was utilized for the curved surface study. The WSP's current fleet of Trimble X7 3D laser scanners, the WSP Criminal Investigation Division (CID) Detectives who operate these scanners, and the Forensic Scientists responsible for trajectory rod placement and angle measurements were utilized. An overall measurement uncertainty of +/− 2.6 degrees at an approximate 95% confidence interval was determined for all trajectory angles measured from trajectory rods.     

Dialect on trial: use of African American Vernacular English influences juror appraisals*

ABSTRACT

We investigated the effect of dialect and race on juror decision making. Mock jurors read a summary of an ambiguous criminal case, which included audio of a defense witness (Study 1) or defendant (Study 2). Both speaker dialect [General American English (GAE)/African American Vernacular English (AAVE)] and race (White/Black) were crossed; Study 2 also included three levels of case (Ambiguous/Pro-Prosecution/Pro-Defense) to evaluate any effects of evidentiary context. In both studies, jurors who listened to the AAVE recording found the AAVE-speaking witness to be less professional and less educated than their GAE-speaking counterparts. Interestingly, jurors in Study 2 who heard the defendant use GAE were more likely to find him guilty and found him less credible when the case favored the prosecution, hinting that ingroup biases such as the black sheep effect may also play a role in perceptions of dialect. Secondary analyses found that AAVE predicted more negative overall evaluations of the speaker, and these negative evaluations were associated with an increase in guilty verdicts. Together, these findings suggest that dialect plays an under-investigated role in the courtroom, and that bias against AAVE negatively impacts juror appraisals of its speakers and can potentially influence juror decision making.     

Saving the Nation's Expendable Children: Amending State Education Laws to Encourage Keeping Students in School

Disciplinary codes are designed to govern the behavior of millions of students attending U.S. public schools. As currently implemented, a great majority of these codes afford school personnel expansive, if not full, discretion to impose any sanction they deem appropriate in response to a student's alleged misconduct. Suspension and expulsion are two frequently used exclusionary sanctions that result in a large group of students who are pushed out of their learning environments around the nation on a daily basis. These detrimental exclusionary punishments have been increasingly used to address minor misbehavior rather than be reserved solely for serious offenses. This Note will describe the harmful implications currently associated with suspending and expelling children as a means to address misbehavior in school. This Note will then propose that all states amend their current education laws to limit infractions that may be punishable by suspension and/or expulsion exclusively to felonies as well as discuss practical alternatives schools should consider as a response to student misconduct. Implementation of this proposal would minimize the high rate of children being removed from their classrooms and would ultimately heighten the opportunity for children to learn.