People
Edelyn Verona
Professor and
Co-Director, Center for Justice Research & Policy
CONTACT
Office: PCD 4126
Phone: 813/974-0392
Email
LINKS
EDUCATION
Ph.D. (Clinical Psychology), 2001, Florida State University (FSU)
RESEARCH
Our lab approaches the study of psychology and crime through an interdisciplinary lens and collaborates with scholars in other social sciences and with community partners to study and address crime, justice, aggression, and violence prevention. Our current focus is on applied and policy research. We apply science to understand psychological and structural pathways to incarceration, improve reentry for returning citizens, uncover intersections between mental health and criminal justice system involvement, and prevent violence. As an example, our group runs a large collaborative grant funded by the National Institute of Justice to implement and evaluate interventions to reduce recidivism among persons incarcerated in a county jail. We are also studying the processes of implementing policy, such as firearm risk protection laws, the role of equity and bias in the criminal-legal system, and evaluations of police reform programs, such as alternative crisis responder models. Other examples of lab projects include adaptations of DBT in forensic settings, prediction of recidivism by psychological and structural variables, and the identification of risk factors and prevention of gun violence.
SPECIALTY AREA
Clinical
SELECTED PUBLICATIONS
Verona, E., & Fox, B. (in press). Pathways to Crime and Antisocial Behavior: A Critical Analysis of Psychological Research and Call for Broader Ecological Perspectives. Annual Review of Clinical Psychology.
Verona, E., McCarthy, A., Liller, K., Torres, E., Guincho, M., & McGee, M. (in press). Equity and Access of a Civilian-Based Crisis Response Model. Psychological Services.
Verona, E., McDonald, J.B., Fournier, L.F., Brown, M.E., & Carsten, E.E. (in press). Adapting a Dialectical Behavior Therapy Skills Group Within a Jail Setting. Cognitive and Behavioral Practice.
McKinley, S.J., & Verona, E. (2023). Cool under fire: Psychopathic personality traits and decision-making in law enforcement-oriented populations. Law & Human Behavior, 47(5), 591.
Verona, E., Bozzay, M., & Bryan, C. J. (2023). Contributions of Biobehavioral Sciences to the Study and Prevention of Firearm Violence: Perceived Threat, Cognitive Control, and Firearm Culture. Policy Insights from the Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 10(2), 272-278.
Hicks, B.M., Vitro, C., Johnson, E., Sherman, C., Heitzeg, M.M., Durbin, E., & Verona, E. (2023). Who bought a gun during the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States?: Associations with QAnon beliefs, right-wing political attitudes, intimate partner violence, antisocial behavior, suicidality, and mental health and substance use problems. PLOS ONE, 18(8), e0290770.
Verona, E., McDonald, J., & Bozzay, M. (2023). Threat Effects on Cognitive Systems: Testing Links to Aggression Proneness. Emotion, 23(6), 1633–1647.
Verona, E., *McKinley, S.J., *Hoffmann, A., Murphy, B., & Watts, A. (2023). Psychopathy Facets, Perceived Power, and Distinct Forms of Aggression. Personality Disorders: Theory, Research & Treatment, 14, 259-273.