<Emphasis Type="Italic">Miranda</Emphasis> Comprehension in Adults with Mental Retardation and the Effects of Feedback Style on Suggestibility

Interrogations present several major challenges to persons with mental retardation (MR). Sixty adults with mild MR completed measures of Miranda comprehension and tendency to yield to leading questions. In addition, suggestibility was assessed based on whether participants revised answers to questions in response to unfriendly, friendly, or neutral feedback to original responses. Furthermore, we examined how expressed confidence in answers to repeated questions varied with the type of feedback received. Results revealed that participants demonstrated marked difficulties understanding their Miranda rights and greater likelihood of changing answers to questions for which they received friendly feedback than for questions for which they received unfriendly or neutral feedback. Most participants who received positive reinforcement for their answers on a second trial expressed confidence about improvement from trial 1 to trial 2, although accuracy did not improve. Implications of these results are reviewed.     

Perceiving Self-Interest: Power,Ideology, and Maintenance of the Status Quo

We explore the perception of self-interest based on the social position of the person making a persuasive argument, and whether the argument challenges peoples representation of the social world. More self-interest is perceived when it is made on behalf of a small rather than a large group (Experiment 1), comes from a low status rather than a high status group (Experiment 2), and when it benefits an outgroup more than an ingroup (Experiment 3). We show that attempting to change the political status quo, no matter whose interests it may serve, leads to perceptions of self-interest (Experiment 4). We discuss these findings in terms of beliefs, social ideologies, and attitudes, and argue that perceptions of self-interest are often a marker of the defense of the status quo from perceived threats.     

Middle School Aggression and Subsequent Intimate Partner Physical Violence

This study examined the relationship between middle-school aggressive behaviors and young adults’ experiences as victims and perpetrators of intimate partner physical violence. As part of the Reach for Health longitudinal study, surveys were conducted with 977 8th graders who were resurveyed as young adults, when lifetime partner violence was assessed. In this economically disadvantaged sample, the prevalence of middle-school aggression and subsequent partner violence are high among both males and females. In middle school, 32% of girls and 42% of boys reported being in a recent fight and 12% of girls and 17% of boys had threatened another with a weapon. By the time they were 19–20 years old, about 35% of females and males reported being the victims of one or more forms of partner violence; 35% of females and 22% of males reported one or more forms of perpetration. Controlling for socio-demographic characteristics, middle-school aggression is a significant risk factor for partner victimization and perpetration. Early aggression remains an independent predictor of partner violence perpetration and victimization for males and perpetration for females when other middle-school risk behaviors and exposures to physical aggression in the childhood home are taken into account. To reduce partner violence through young adulthood, findings suggest the importance of early interventions that help adolescents learn non-violent strategies for resolving conflicts in cross-gender relationships.Principal Investigator for the study.Co-Principal Investigator and Senior Methodologist.Responsible for developing the survey instrument.Responsible for pilot testing the survey instrument and overseeing field operations.Responsible for data management and conducted statistical analyses.Responsible for convening the Community Advisory Board and developing the survey instrument.     

The brokering role of technology transfer offices within entrepreneurial ecosystems: an investigation of macro–meso–micro factors

The Journal of Technology Transfer - Previous studies have identified the importance of entrepreneurial and innovation ecosystems, however, few have considered in an integrated multi-level way, the...     

Understanding Perceptions of Racism in the Aftermath of Hurricane Katrina: The Roles of System and Group Justification

The present study examined perceptions of racism in events that occurred during the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina among a community sample of New Orleans area residents. Drawing on system justification theory, we examined system justification motives (i.e., meritocracy beliefs) and group justification motives (i.e., group identity) as predictors of perceptions of racism among African Americans and European Americans. Compared to African Americans, European Americans perceived much lower levels of racism in Katrina-related events. Furthermore, meritocracy beliefs were negatively related to perceptions of racism among both African Americans and European Americans. However, private regard (a component of group identity) was positively related to perceptions of racism among African Americans, but negatively related to perceptions of racism among European Americans. The results suggest that both system and group justification motives independently predict perceptions of racism in an important real-world event. Furthermore, system and group justification motives appear to operate in opposition for African Americans, but in tandem for European Americans.     

At the frontiers of scientific advancement: the factors that influence scientists to become or choose to become publicly funded principal investigators

This paper aims to unearth the factors that influence scientists in becoming and choosing to become publicly funded principal investigators (PIs). PIs are the linchpins of knowledge transformation and bridging triple helix actors, particularly academia-industry. At a micro level, PIs are at the nexus of engaging and interacting with other triple helix actors. No study to date has specifically focused on the factors that influence scientists to become or choose to become publicly funded PIs. For scientists taking on the role of a PI represents an important landmark in their research career. Set in an Irish research system we found two main categories of influencing factors—push and pull. Pull factors are where the PI has more choice in choosing to become a PI, where as push factors is where the PI has less choice in choosing to become a PI. Pull factors we identified were control, career ambition and advancement, personal drive and ambition. Pull factors we identified were project dependencies and institutional pressures.