Stalking is defined as a pattern of repeated, unwanted behavior directed at a specific individual that would cause a reasonable person to experience fear or distress. National data indicate that 23-33% women and 17% of men experience stalking in their lifetime, and approximately 33% of stalking cases escalate to physical violence. Although stalking has been widely studied as a form of victimization, less attention has been given to its role as a potential pathway behavior occurring before targeted violence within Behavioral Threat Assessment (BTA) frameworks. This proposed literature review project will synthesize research on stalking typologies, offender characteristics, intimate partner dynamics, duration patterns, and escalation behaviors to examine the strength of evidence for when stalking may transition into targeted violence. Particular attention will be given to certain leading pathway behaviors (e.g., rehearsal behaviors, expressed intent to harm) as well as three underexamined variables in the literature: (1) timing and duration of stalking behavior, (2) relational intimacy and offender-victim dynamics, and (3) perceived rejection as a catalyst for escalation. Existing research suggests that stalking related to prior intimate relationships may carry elevated risk, particularly when combined with fixation and grievance-driven thinking. This review will involve an analysis of the strength of research methods used in existing research, such as single case studies, groups of cases, or comparing multiple groups. We will discuss strengths and limitations of existing research designs as well as implications for early identification, multidisciplinary threat assessment teams, and violence prevention strategies in educational, workplace, and community settings.

This study aims to examine how infants acquire gender labels, which reflect children's conceptual understanding of gender as a social category. Children's recognition of gender is a foundational building block to form a gender identity. To address this aim, we plan to code and analyze previously collected annotated and transcribed videos on mothers and their infants engaging in natural activity in their homes (N = 900+). The Play & Learning Across a Year (PLAY) project data set is drawn from 30 sites across North America. Within this corpus of available data, a portion of mother-infant participants are of Latine-American background, with some who are Spanish-speaking. Examining language production from the transcripts, we will examine whether mother-infant gender label talk differs between monolingual Latine-heritage families and bilingual Latine-heritage families. 

There are four different attachment styles, three insecure and one secure. Anxious slash preoccupied, avoidant slash dismissive, disorganized slash fearful-avoidant, and secure. Each style has a set of their own characteristics and can affect any relationship in someone’s life. All attachment styles develop from childhood and how someone was raised. Through experiences, each attachment style can change for the positive or negative however, working towards a secure attachment is always something that can be worked on. Knowing what attachment style someone associates with can help boost any relationship in their lives especially the one with themselves.

Complex interactions of social, psychological, and environmental factors influence violence-related behaviors such as offending, aggression, and other harmful actions. Among the psychological factors receiving growing attention are cognitive distortions, which are defined as systematic errors in reasoning that shape perception, limit adaptive problem-solving, and justify harmful behavior. Research in psychology, forensic science, and criminology has linked cognitive distortions to violence, aggression, moral disengagement, substance misuse, and criminal offending. Despite this growing body of research, findings remain fragmented across different settings, populations, and behavioral outcomes. This study investigates the relationship between cognitive distortions and violence-related outcomes through a systematic review and meta-analysis of empirical studies. Relevant studies will be identified through PubMed, PsycINFO, Scopus, and Web of Science. Relevant findings from eligible studies will be synthesized to identify patterns in the literature and estimate the strength of the relationship between cognitive distortions and violence-related outcomes. Overall, the project seeks to estimate the overall strength of the association between cognitive distortions and violence-related outcomes and clarify their role in violence risk, rehabilitation, prevention, and intervention efforts. 

First-generation college students often enter higher education and are expected to navigate academic systems, campus resources, and university expectations that may not always be clearly explained. This can include figuring out how to seek academic support, connect with mentors, and understand the “hidden rules” of college that are often assumed rather than explicitly stated (Laiduc & Covarrubias, 2022). Recent research in a minority-serving college suggests that first-generation students benefit when universities make academic resources and expectations easier to understand. This includes early explaining how to use campus resources and academic planning tools (Ramirez et al., 2021). These types of support may be particularly important for students from marginalized or underrepresented backgrounds, who can face additional barriers to accessing resources and opportunities in college. This project will use multivariate regression and mediation to explore how navigating resources, sense of belonging, and transition smoothness are related among first-generation students at a minority-serving public research university. Data was collected through a survey advertised to first-generation college students. The survey asks about students’ comfort using academic tools, use of campus resources, sense of belonging, and navigation of academic systems and transitions. Qualitative survey responses about supportive spaces and resources will help us better understand commonalities and variations in student experiences. Findings may help identify which supports and resources are predictive of stronger belonging, academic confidence, and smoother transitions among first-generation students. This will inform our understanding of the impact of programs that make university expectations and support resources more visible and accessible to first-generation students. 

Child development research has led to increasingly complex ways to measure peer conflict in the lab. Recent research has included executive functions in measurements to explain mechanisms used to support social competence. However, recent research has also shown evidence that children's true peer conflict ability may not be fully represented or explained by in lab tasks, despite having well controlled experiments. This goal of the current study is to explore and analyze the discrepancies between in-lab peer conflict responses and true social competence exhibited by children. The data analysis included 84 children ages 4-5 and their scores from executive function tasks and the virtual school game as well as questionnaires completed by teachers. The children were then placed in categories based on their z-scores. The results of this study will allow researchers to expand on different characteristics of children and their level of social competence and explain the differences between the level of social competence they exhibit in the lab vs real life using common in lab batteries. It will also allow researchers to analyze and explain the discrepencies leading to better support for promoting parenting and teaching strategies.