Problematic interactions between autistic adults and the justice system. This project aims to highlight how autistic adults may fall foul of the law due to a diminished ability to recognise subtle cues in social interactions that should warn of unfolding criminal activity or deteriorating relationships with justice system personnel. Autism Spectrum Disorder has unique characteristics that may lead to unwitting involvement in crime and problematic interactions with the justice system. This projec ....Problematic interactions between autistic adults and the justice system. This project aims to highlight how autistic adults may fall foul of the law due to a diminished ability to recognise subtle cues in social interactions that should warn of unfolding criminal activity or deteriorating relationships with justice system personnel. Autism Spectrum Disorder has unique characteristics that may lead to unwitting involvement in crime and problematic interactions with the justice system. This project expects to unveil innovative research paradigms, establish a knowledge base for police and the courts, and assist in developing guidelines for remediating misunderstandings that contribute to problematic interactions with the justice system.Read moreRead less
Investigating memory reliability in intoxicated witnesses of crime. Eyewitness testimony is a crucial piece of evidence for solving a crime. Inaccurate testimony leads to miscarriages of justice such as failed prosecutions or false convictions. Many witnesses and victims are affected by alcohol or other drugs during the crime. This project brings together a multidisciplinary team aiming to improve understanding of how intoxication with different substances affects the reliability of victim and w ....Investigating memory reliability in intoxicated witnesses of crime. Eyewitness testimony is a crucial piece of evidence for solving a crime. Inaccurate testimony leads to miscarriages of justice such as failed prosecutions or false convictions. Many witnesses and victims are affected by alcohol or other drugs during the crime. This project brings together a multidisciplinary team aiming to improve understanding of how intoxication with different substances affects the reliability of victim and witness memory accuracy. Crucially, crimes are frequently distressing; therefore the interaction between intoxication and stress urgently requires exploration. This project will significantly advance our understanding of key mechanisms behind drug effects on memory, and support fairer judicial outcomes for all. Read moreRead less
Creating perceptual experts in Australia's policing and security agencies. This project aims to create the next generation of experts in Australia’s policing and national security agencies, by improving crime scene evidence interpretation. Agencies are under pressure to develop more rigorous training practices that go beyond mere intuition and tradition. This project will use a novel approach that directs learning toward the most diagnostic perceptual cues. Expected outcomes include a solid empi ....Creating perceptual experts in Australia's policing and security agencies. This project aims to create the next generation of experts in Australia’s policing and national security agencies, by improving crime scene evidence interpretation. Agencies are under pressure to develop more rigorous training practices that go beyond mere intuition and tradition. This project will use a novel approach that directs learning toward the most diagnostic perceptual cues. Expected outcomes include a solid empirical basis for national training programs designed to create experts that are accurate, reliable, and continuously improving. Improving the training of experts will ensure the integrity of forensics as evidentiary tools available to police, lead to more reliable courtroom convictions and help safeguard Australia from terrorism and crime.Read moreRead less
The cost of keeping gruesome images from the world. This project aims to investigate one of society’s most invisible ‘frontline’ trauma workforces—the online content moderators responsible for limiting the public’s exposure to distressing and sensitive content on social media. Using a series of rigorous experiments, and cutting-edge psychological and physiological assessment techniques, the research will advance our understanding of the impact of indirect trauma on mental health. Expected outcom ....The cost of keeping gruesome images from the world. This project aims to investigate one of society’s most invisible ‘frontline’ trauma workforces—the online content moderators responsible for limiting the public’s exposure to distressing and sensitive content on social media. Using a series of rigorous experiments, and cutting-edge psychological and physiological assessment techniques, the research will advance our understanding of the impact of indirect trauma on mental health. Expected outcomes include novel empirical evidence for preventative strategies that will predict, monitor and reduce negative mental health outcomes. This will provide significant global benefits to people with indirect trauma experiences, such as defence and forensic personnel.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE210100357
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$427,320.00
Summary
What determines your face identification accuracy? Accurate face identification underpins normal social functioning and important identity verification procedures in society, government and the justice system. However, there is little understanding of the cognitive processes that give rise to individual differences in face identification. This project aims to develop a new cognitive model that characterises how holistic and part-based processing combine to determine individual differences in fac ....What determines your face identification accuracy? Accurate face identification underpins normal social functioning and important identity verification procedures in society, government and the justice system. However, there is little understanding of the cognitive processes that give rise to individual differences in face identification. This project aims to develop a new cognitive model that characterises how holistic and part-based processing combine to determine individual differences in face identification. Expected benefits include advancing knowledge of human face perception, and evidence-based training and personnel selection tools to improve decision accuracy, help police prevent crime and terrorism, and avoid wrongful conviction of innocent suspects.Read moreRead less
Determining principles for successful episode retrieval of repeated events. This project aims to develop the first-ever set of explanatory principles for how people successfully retain and retrieve individual episode memories from repeated experiences (e.g., one occurrence of a routine social encounter or job-related activity). By deepening our understanding of how memory works, this new knowledge is expected to lay the foundation for interview guidance and ongoing research aimed at enhancing th ....Determining principles for successful episode retrieval of repeated events. This project aims to develop the first-ever set of explanatory principles for how people successfully retain and retrieve individual episode memories from repeated experiences (e.g., one occurrence of a routine social encounter or job-related activity). By deepening our understanding of how memory works, this new knowledge is expected to lay the foundation for interview guidance and ongoing research aimed at enhancing the proficiency of investigations into matters that rely on detailed and accurate accounts of specific episodes. This includes workplace or traffic accident investigations, infectious disease contact tracing, as well as prosecution of repeated sexual offences.Read moreRead less
Threshold Decisions in Determining Whether to Prosecute Child Sexual Abuse. The objective of this project is new knowledge about the way police and prosecutors make decisions about the prosecution of child sexual assault that could be used to influence policy and practice. Few cases of child sexual abuse reported to the police ever go to court but recent research in New South Wales for the Royal Commission indicates that the proportion has declined sharply over the last decade or so. This projec ....Threshold Decisions in Determining Whether to Prosecute Child Sexual Abuse. The objective of this project is new knowledge about the way police and prosecutors make decisions about the prosecution of child sexual assault that could be used to influence policy and practice. Few cases of child sexual abuse reported to the police ever go to court but recent research in New South Wales for the Royal Commission indicates that the proportion has declined sharply over the last decade or so. This project aims to examine how police and prosecutors decide which cases proceed and why, and how they confer with each other as well as when and how they consult with complainants and their families. This project plans to also develop and test practice tools and principles for police and prosecutors with expected benefits for both them and the families involved.Read moreRead less
A framework for adapting child interview protocols in complex cases. This project aims to develop–in collaboration with Aboriginal and other industry co-researchers–a ‘how to’ framework for effectively adapting standard child abuse interview protocols to accommodate the complexities that create barriers to disclosure. Complex cases necessitate interview adaption, but it requires systematic guidance and an interdisciplinary, practitioner-driven approach to be effective. This innovative framework ....A framework for adapting child interview protocols in complex cases. This project aims to develop–in collaboration with Aboriginal and other industry co-researchers–a ‘how to’ framework for effectively adapting standard child abuse interview protocols to accommodate the complexities that create barriers to disclosure. Complex cases necessitate interview adaption, but it requires systematic guidance and an interdisciplinary, practitioner-driven approach to be effective. This innovative framework is expected to have long-term benefits for services that support children’s well-being, through improvements in the quality of evidence underpinning decisions. By enhancing interviewer capability, there will also be fewer cases prematurely exiting the justice system before forensic interview or investigation.Read moreRead less
Faces in context: A new ecological paradigm for person identification. Accurate face recognition is critical to normal social functioning of individuals and identity management processes that underpin a secure and fair Australia. Current understanding is based on tests that do not capture the rich context surrounding person identification in daily life. This project aims to introduce new methods for observing person identification in daily life and real-world tasks that are critical to border se ....Faces in context: A new ecological paradigm for person identification. Accurate face recognition is critical to normal social functioning of individuals and identity management processes that underpin a secure and fair Australia. Current understanding is based on tests that do not capture the rich context surrounding person identification in daily life. This project aims to introduce new methods for observing person identification in daily life and real-world tasks that are critical to border security, criminal investigations and the justice system. Expected outcomes include an integrated framework for person identification describing the cognitive mechanisms that link faces to surrounding visual context and the viewer’s background knowledge. Benefits in forensic, security and legal settings are expected.Read moreRead less
Early Career Industry Fellowships - Grant ID: IE230100380
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$390,574.00
Summary
Enhancing comprehension of forensic science in the justice system. Failures to effectively communicate the accuracy and reliability of forensic evidence to courts can lead to unreliable convictions and miscarriages of justice. This project aims to understand how best to distil complex information about error and uncertainty in forensic expert opinion evidence for enhanced comprehension of forensic science in the justice system. Outcomes include evidence-based strategies for communicating error a ....Enhancing comprehension of forensic science in the justice system. Failures to effectively communicate the accuracy and reliability of forensic evidence to courts can lead to unreliable convictions and miscarriages of justice. This project aims to understand how best to distil complex information about error and uncertainty in forensic expert opinion evidence for enhanced comprehension of forensic science in the justice system. Outcomes include evidence-based strategies for communicating error and uncertainty in forensic science and an accessible online dashboard for visualising known error rates in forensic disciplines. The knowledge gained from the project will help forensic experts to calibrate how they present their conclusions to courts for improved comprehension and evaluation of forensic evidence.Read moreRead less