Non COES Majors

Project Summary

Trust in the American court system is a foundational pillar of the legal system, based on the public's belief that authorities will make fair and just decisions. Therefore, understanding what factors degrade the public’s faith in the system is crucial. Most research on this topic examines the amount of trust placed in the police or the government. However, there are no articles that investigate the relationship between trauma and trust in American courts. This is an issue because individuals who have any number of ACEs are more likely to encounter the criminal justice system, including courts. Understanding how trauma affects individuals' faith in the courts can inform judges on the need to take a trauma-informed approach. Furthermore, it may allow us to determine if the courts are perpetuating additional trauma onto people, creating a vicious cycle. Therefore, the current study proposes to examine the effects of trauma on trust in the American courts. Participants over the age of 18 and that resided in the United States were recruited utilizing SONA, social media, and CloudResearch (n = 122). Participants were asked to fill out a demographics survey, Court Legitimacy Scale, ACE questionnaire, and the PCL-5. A simple linear regression was used to examine whether ACEs or PCL-5 scores predict lower trust in the court system. ACEs significantly predicted lower perceived moral alignment with courts, fair court decision-making, and fair treatment by courts. PCL-5 scores significantly predicted lower perceived court accuracy, fair court decision-making, and fair treatment by courts. Overall, this suggests that both childhood and adult trauma experiences degrade faith in the American court system. Court authorities should seek to educate and explain court processes to increase transparency and trust.

Project Objective

Objective 1: To explore the effect of ACE scores on belief in the legitimacy of the American court system. Objective 2: To explore the effect of ACE scores on judgments of the American court system. Objective 3: To explore the effect of trauma symptoms on belief in the legitimacy and judgment of the American court system. Objective 4: To explore the effect of trauma symptoms on judgments of the American court system.

Analysis

A simple linear regression was used to examine whether ACEs or PCL-5 scores predict lower trust in the court system.

Project Summary

There is growing public concern that young people are becoming addicted to social media applications, a fear that is echoed both in research trends and recent, widely publicized court cases. This phenomenon is known as Problematic Social Media Use, which is characterized by an extreme overuse of social media, an obsessive need to engage with social media, and a substantial amount of distress and impairment caused by social media. A substantial amount of research has examined the various pathways to developing and maintaining Problematic Social Media Use (PSMU). Various factors may contribute to the formation of, or are caused by, PSMU. Those factors include fear of missing out (FoMO), specific social media use motives and behaviors, and symptoms of certain psychological disorders (namely anxiety, depression, and stress). While many studies have examined these factors individually or in some combination, few have taken such a holistic approach to understanding the maintenance of PSMU as to include all of these factors in one model. Thus, this study aims to examine how one’s social media use behaviors, use motives, and the experience of fear of missing out (FoMO) relate to PSMU and mental well-being (depression, anxiety, and stress). We collected participant self-report data from both Florida Tech students (N = 31) and qualifying users of online survey platform Cloud Research Connect (N = 191). We found that most motives for social media use predicted problematic use and FoMO, but escapism and social comparison use motives were especially problematic for mental well being. These preliminary findings may hold key insights for how we understand the relationship between FoMO, social media use motives, and PSMU behaviors.

Project Summary

This study builds on a prior student study (Frederickson, 2022) to examine the effects mindfulness induction has at the encoding and retrieval stages on false memory recognition for negative and neutral semantically associated (Deese-Roediger-McDermott, DRM) word lists. Participants were randomly assigned to either experience a brief mindfulness induction before learning word lists (n = 23), after learning (n =23), or to a control group (n = 21). Around the mindfulness or filler exercises (sudoku), all participants were presented with six negatively valenced and six neutral DRM word lists, each containing 10 words, and then given a 72-item recognition test that included true (target) and false (distractor) items. Findings showed that correct recognition was better for negative than for neutral target test words, but overall false recognition across all distractor types was also significantly greater for negative words. Neither word valence nor mindfulness condition showed effects on critical lure distractor words as hypothesized, but the mindfulness after encoding condition was found to have higher false recognition for negative related distractors and negative distractor words collectively. These findings suggest that administering a mindfulness exercise with eyewitnesses before they report memory information may be problematic, as mindfulness induction prior to memory retrieval broadly increased false recognition of negative emotional information.

Project Summary

Electronic recording of custodial interrogations is a safeguard for preserving information, reducing false confessions, and protecting suspects, witnesses, victims, and officers. Despite empirical support and international consensus favoring mandatory recording, implementation across U.S. jurisdictions remains fragmented. This study provides a systematic analysis of electronic recording requirements across all 50 states and the District of Columbia, examining the legal mechanisms, scope, enforcement consequences, and population-specific protections governing investigative interview recordings. Results revealed that only 52.9% of jurisdictions maintained enforceable recording mandates for suspect interrogations, with only 11.8% requiring recording across all felony categories. Recording mandates concentrated overwhelmingly on serious violent offenses (homicide: 77.8%; sexual assault: 66.7%). Remedial consequences for non-compliance were predominantly weak, with only two jurisdictions providing for statement exclusion. Enhanced protections for vulnerable populations remained limited: 29.4% of jurisdictions provided juvenile-specific requirements, while only 5.9% addressed non-juvenile vulnerable adults. No jurisdiction required witness or victim interview recording. These findings document substantial variation in regulatory approaches that may influence the effectiveness of recording as a safeguard against wrongful convictions. The analysis provides policymakers and practitioners with systematic comparative data essential for evidence-informed policy development aligned with psychological research on memory, suggestibility, and false confession risk.

Project Summary

This study examined the decision-making process behind U.S. lone actor target selection with weapon type influence and strength of attribute influence, measured using the EVIL DONE framework (Clarke & Newman, 2006). Set within the context of the Age of New Terrorism (the methods by which technological diffusion and online radicalization have reshaped patterns of violence; Gill et al., 2017; Romyn & Kebbell, 2018) and integrating situational crime prevention with a red team simulation methodology, this study informed cognitive and situational deterrents of lone-actor target selection under varying weapon constraints.

Project Summary

Emergency response teams frequently struggle with communication failures, cognitive overload, and organizational barriers that prevent agencies from achieving interoperability in extreme and high-stakes contexts influenced by uncertainty and time-sensitive applications. Technological systems, such as AI decision-support tools, have the potential to reduce uncertainty, improve information sharing, and foster trust in multi-agency decision-making. However, issues of AI reliability and explainability may introduce decision biases and errors of overreliance. This study investigates the effects of AI reliability (high vs. low) and AI explainability (explainable vs. ambiguous) on decision accuracy, perceived interoperability, and trust in AI within emergency response scenarios. Participants assumed the role of an incident commander and reviewed multi-agency emergency response vignettes featuring both human and AI recommendations, manipulated to present either a detailed rationale or no justification. Decision accuracy, perceived interoperability, mental workload, perceived urgency, and trust in AI were assessed using validated survey scales. We hypothesized that high-reliability AI and explainable outputs would lead to improved decision-making performance, increased trust, and enhanced perceptions of interoperability. Furthermore, we hypothesized that perceived interoperability would mediate the relationship between AI reliability and decision outcomes. The study intended to identify psychological and technological factors that shape effective human–AI teaming in extreme situations and inform improved emergency decision-making.

Project Summary

Florida is one of eighteen U.S. states with universal mandated reporting laws, requiring all citizens to report child maltreatment. However, most research has focused on professional mandated reporters, with limited attention to how non-professionals interpret and respond to suspected child maltreatment. This study examined the effects of training using the Child Advocacy Studies (CAST) minor and compared three groups of students, including a general student sample, a pre-CAST group, and a post-CAST group. Participants' knowledge, attitudes, reasonable suspicion judgments, and reporting decisions were assessed using statutorily developed child maltreatment scenarios. Post-CAST students demonstrated significantly greater mandated reporting knowledge, more positive mandated reporting attitudes, and a lower threshold for reasonable suspicion compared to both the general and pre-CAST student samples. Pre-CAST students demonstrated significantly greater knowledge than the general student sample. Although correct reasonable suspicion determinations did not differ significantly across the three groups, the general student sample reported significantly fewer child maltreatment scenarios to CPS. Overall, this suggests that non-professionals appear capable of recognizing circumstances that meet the threshold for reasonable suspicion, but training is critical for translating recognition into appropriate mandated reporting action.

Project Objective

To develop and use statutorily guided child maltreatment vignettes reflecting scenarios non-professionals may reasonably encounter to assess reasonable suspicion judgments and reporting decisions and compare outcomes across training levels.

Project Summary

This study examines the role of structured coaching strategies in shaping both athletic performance and psychosocial development in youth sports. Specifically, it evaluates a pilot intervention conducted with 24 African American youth enrolled in a local Afrocentric afterschool program. Grounded in racial socialization literature and principles of autonomy-supportive coaching, the intervention integrates PRIDE skills (Praise, Reflection, Imitation, Description, and Enthusiasm) from Teacher-Child Interaction Therapy (TCIT) into basketball training. Participants completed baseline assessments of self-esteem and perceptions of success using validated psychological measures, while fundamental basketball skills were observed and scored. During the intervention phase, coaches were trained to replace traditional correction-based feedback with structured, positive reinforcement techniques designed to promote confidence, motivation, and skill acquisition. Preliminary findings indicate a significant relationship between self-esteem and perceived success at baseline, as well as measurable improvements in defensive basketball performance following the intervention. Coaches also demonstrated increased use of PRIDE-based behaviors over time. However, high baseline levels of self-esteem among participants and the absence of a control group limit the ability to detect broader psychological changes and establish causal conclusions. Overall, this study highlights the potential for youth sports environments to serve as accessible, community-based platforms for delivering evidence-based psychological interventions. By intentionally structuring coaching behaviors, programs may simultaneously support skill development and psychosocial outcomes, particularly in underserved populations where access to formal mental health resources may be limited.

Project Objective

The objective of this study is to examine whether a TCIT-informed, autonomy-supportive coaching intervention can improve fundamental basketball skills, as well as psychosocial outcomes such as self-esteem and perceptions of success, among youth participants.

Manufacturing Design Methods

A pilot study using a pre- and post-assessment design was conducted with 24 participants. Baseline measures included standardized self-report assessments of self-esteem and perceived success, as well as observed basketball skill performance. The intervention involved training coaches to implement PRIDE skills (Praise, Reflection, Imitation, Description, Enthusiasm) during structured basketball drills. Coaching behaviors and participant performance were monitored and recorded throughout the study.

Specification

Participants: 24 African American youth (ages 5–13) Setting: Afrocentric afterschool program Measures: Children’s Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale; Perception of Success Questionnaire Performance Metrics: Dribbling, passing, shooting, and defensive skills Intervention: TCIT-informed coaching using PRIDE skills Design: Pre- and post-intervention assessment

Analysis

Baseline analyses revealed a significant positive correlation between self-esteem and perceived success. Post-intervention results indicated improvements in defensive basketball skills and increased use of PRIDE-based coaching behaviors. However, participants initially reported relatively high levels of self-esteem and perceived success, which may have limited observable changes. Additionally, as a pilot study without a control group and with an ongoing intervention, findings should be interpreted as preliminary.

Future Works

Future research should include a larger and more diverse sample, the use of a control group, and longitudinal follow-up to better assess changes over time. Expanding the intervention across multiple community programs would also help evaluate its scalability and broader impact.

Acknowledgement

I would like to acknowledge Dr. Chavez for mentorship and guidance, as well as the participating afterschool program, research team members, and youth whose involvement made this study possible.