Aaron M. Scherer

Multiple Homicide Offenders - Offense Characteristics, Social Correlates, and Criminal Careers

Because investigations of multiple homicide offenders (MHOs) are usually case studies, there is limited understanding of the linkages between them and other criminal offenders. Using data from an exploratory sample of 160 MHOs and a control group of 494 single homicide offenders, this study examines MHOs from a criminal career perspective and finds that nearly 30% of them were habitual offenders before their final homicide event. Those with prior rape convictions, misdemeanor convictions, more extensive prison histories, and current involvement in rape and burglary are more likely to kill multiple victims. Curiously, nearly 40% of MHOs had zero prior arrests. Overall, arrest onset occurs later in the life course and is not predictive of offending. In conclusion, the study of MHOs could enrich the criminal career perspective, while posing some empirical and theoretical challenges to that paradigm.

Getting Ahead of Illness: Using Metaphors to Influence Medical Decision Making

Background. Metaphors influence judgments and decisions in nonmedical contexts. Objective. First, to investigate whether describing the flu metaphorically increases an individual’s willingness and interest in getting a flu vaccination, and second, to explore possible mediators and moderators of the effect that metaphors might have on vaccination intentions. Materials and Methods. Three studies, each using a between-subjects manipulation in which the flu was described literally (as a virus) or metaphorically (as a beast, riot, army, or weed), were conducted. A total of 167 psychology undergraduates (study 1) and 300 and 301 online participants (studies 2 and 3, respectively) were included. Studies 1 through 3 examined vaccination behavioral intentions, absolute risk, comparative risk, perceived flu severity, and recent flu and flu vaccination experience. Studies 2 and 3 assessed vaccination e-mail reminder requests and global affect. Study 3 evaluated affective reactions, personal control, and understanding of the flu. Results. Describing the flu metaphorically increased individuals’ willingness to get vaccinated (studies 1–3), while the impact of metaphors on requests to receive an e-mail reminder to get vaccinated was unclear (studies 2 and 3). These results were moderated by vaccination frequency in study 2, such that the effects were found among individuals who occasionally receive flu vaccinations but not among individuals who never or always receive flu vaccinations. Metaphor use did not significantly impact any of the hypothesized mediators: perceived absolute risk, comparative risk, flu severity, affect, personal control, or understanding of the flu. Limitations include convenience samples and measuring behavioral intentions but not actual vaccination behavior. Conclusions. Describing the flu virus metaphorically in decision aids or information campaigns could be a simple, cost-effective way to increase vaccinations against the flu.

The Starkweather Syndrome: exploring criminal history antecedents of homicidal crime sprees 1

Little is known about the criminal backgrounds of offenders who commit homicidal crime sprees. Based on data from a purposive sample of 654 convicted murderers selected from eight states, this study compared the offense and criminal history of offenders who committed homicides during crime sprees and those who did not. Offenders who murdered during a crime spree were significantly more violent and criminally versatile than other homicide offenders during their instant homicide event. Offenders with prior convictions for robbery, child molestation, and multiple probation sentences were significantly at risk for homicidal spree offending. Implications of the findings and directions for future research are offered.

Graphics help patients distinguish between urgent and non-urgent deviations in laboratory test results.

ABSTRACT Objective: Most electronic health record systems provide laboratory test results to patients in table format. We tested whether presenting such results in visual displays (number lines) could improve understanding. Materials and Methods: We presented 1620 adults recruited from a demographically diverse Internet panel with hypothetical results from several common laboratory tests, first showing near-normal results and then more extreme values. Participants viewed results in either table format (with a “standard range” provided) or one of 3 number line formats: a simple 2-color format, a format with diagnostic categories such as “borderline high” indicated by colored blocks, and a gradient format that used color gradients to smoothly represent increasing risk as values deviated from standard ranges. We measured respondents’ subjective sense of urgency about each test result, their behavioral intentions, and their perceptions of the display format. Results: Visual displays reduced respondents’ perceived urgency and desire to contact health care providers immediately for near-normal test results compared to tables but did not affect their perceptions of extreme values. In regression analyses controlling for respondent health literacy, numeracy, and graphical literacy, gradient line displays resulted in the greatest sensitivity to changes in test results. Discussion: Unlike tables, which only tell patients whether test results are normal or not, visual displays can increase the meaningfulness of test results by clearly defining possible values and leveraging color cues and evaluative labels. Conclusion: Patient-facing displays of laboratory test results should use visual displays rather than tables to increase people’s sensitivity to variations in their results.

Is This Good or Bad?: Redesigning Visual Displays of Medical Test Results in Patient Portals to Provide Context and Meaning

We describe an ongoing effort to improve communication of medical test results directly to patients by providing important contextual information about the test results in a graphical format that is well suited to online patient portals. We undertook an iterative, user-centered design process to explore ways to design meaningful representations of test results. We present findings from this process that have important design implications for communicating test results via online patient portals.

An Ideological House of Mirrors: Political Stereotypes as Exaggerations of Motivated Social Cognition Differences

Previous research on political stereotypes has focused on the perceived moral values or political attitudes of conservatives and liberals. The current studies examined whether laypeople hold stereotypes about the psychological traits of Republicans and Democrats and whether those stereotypes represent exaggerations of actual political differences. Participants completed measures of epistemic (Study 1), existential (Study 2), and ideological (Study 2) motives. Participants also completed these measures based on how they thought the average Republican and average Democrat would respond. Consistent with previous research, Republicans scored higher on these measures of motivated social cognition than Democrats. Critically, political stereotypes about Democrats and Republicans mirrored, but exaggerated, the actual differences. Despite an overall tendency of participants to engage in stereotype exaggeration, Democrats engaged in greater stereotype exaggeration compared to Republicans, and partisans (individuals who strongly identified with either party) engaged in greater stereotype exaggeration compared to more moderate party members.

Hoping for more: the influence of outcome desirability on information seeking and predictions about relative quantities.

People must often engage in sequential sampling in order to make predictions about the relative quantities of two options. We investigated how directional motives influence sampling selections and resulting predictions in such cases. We used a paradigm in which participants had limited time to sample items and make predictions about which side of the screen contained more of a critical item. Sampling selections were biased by monetary desirability manipulations, and participants exhibited a desirability bias for both dichotomous and continuous predictions.

The role of the affect heuristic and cancer anxiety in responding to negative information about medical tests

Objective: Little is known about the affective implications of communicating negative information about medical tests. This research explored how affective processes – particularly the Affect Heuristic and cancer anxiety – influence the way in which people respond to such information. Design: Participants received different types of information about PSA screening for prostate cancer and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans for migraine headaches. This was a 2 (Test harm information: present vs. absent) × 2 (Test benefit information: present vs. absent) × 2 (Test recommendation: present vs. absent) between-participants design. Outcome Measures: Perceived risk, perceived benefit and general attitudes towards PSA and MRI testing, cancer anxiety, preferences to receive the tests vs. not. Results: As predicted by the Affect Heuristic, test harm information reduced perceived test benefits. However, information about uncertain test benefit did not increase perceived test risks. Information about the test reduced cancer anxiety, indicating defensive coping. These variables – affect, anxiety, perceived risks and benefits – all uniquely predicted test preferences. Conclusion: Affective processes play an important role in how people respond to and interpret negative information about medical tests. Information about harms and information about the lack of benefit can both make a test seem less beneficial, and will reduce cancer anxiety as a result.

Cross-sectional associations between psychological traits, and HPV vaccine uptake and intentions in young adults from the United States

Human papillomavirus (HPV) is the most prevalent sexually transmitted infection worldwide and can lead to the development of genital warts, and cancers throughout the body. Despite the availability of HPV vaccines for over a decade, uptake in the United States among adolescents and young adults remains well below national targets. While most efforts to improve HPV vaccine uptake have rightly focused on adolescents, there is still a tremendous opportunity to improve vaccination among young adults who have not been vaccinated against HPV. To that end, we report an exploratory examination of associations between HPV vaccination status and intentions with psychological traits that may impact HPV vaccine uptake with a national, demographically diverse sample of young adults (N = 1358) who completed an online survey. These psychological traits conceptually mapped onto motivations to: 1) understand health-related information, 2) deliberate, 3) manage uncertainty, and 4) manage threats. We found notable gender differences for the association of these motivations and vaccination status. For women, higher interest in and ability to understand health-related information seemed to distinguish those who reported receiving the HPV vaccine from those who did not. For men, less need to deliberate and greater needs to manage threat and uncertainty seemed to be the distinguishing motives for those who reported receiving the HPV vaccine compared to those who did not. Results for vaccination intentions were less consistent, but there was some evidence to indicate that, regardless of gender, greater health-related information interest and understanding and need to manage uncertainty and threats were associated with increased intention to receive the HPV vaccine, while greater need to deliberate was associated with decreased vaccination intentions. These results suggest that there are psychological differences that are associated with HPV vaccination decisions and that these motivations should be considered in efforts to improve HPV vaccine uptake.

Seeing beyond political affiliations: The mediating role of perceived moral foundations on the partisan similarity-liking effect

Decades of research have demonstrated that we like people who are more similar to us. The present research tested a potential mechanism for this similarity-liking effect in the domain of politics: the stereotype that people’s political orientation reflects their morals. People believe that Democrats are more likely to endorse individualizing morals like fairness and Republicans are more likely to endorse binding morals like obedience to authority. Prior to the 2016 election, American participants (N = 314) viewed an ostensible Facebook profile that shared an article endorsing conservative ideals (pro-Trump or pro-Republican), or liberal ideals (pro-Clinton or pro-Democrat). Participants rated the favorability of the profile-owner, and completed the Moral Foundations Questionnaire for the profile-owner and themselves. As predicted, participants liked the profile-owner more when they shared political beliefs, and used political stereotypes to infer the moral foundations of the profile-owner. Additionally, the perceived moral foundation endorsement of the profile owner differentially mediated the relationship between the ideology and evaluations of the profile owner based on the party affiliation of the participant: perceived individualizing foundations mediated the relationship for Democratic participants and perceived binding foundations mediated the relationship for Republican participants. In other words, people liked their in-group members more because they thought that the profile-owner endorsed a specific type of morals. In Study 2 (N = 486), we ruled out the potential explanation that any political stereotype can account for the similarity-liking effect, replicating the results of Study 1 even when controlling for perceptions of other personality differences. Taken together, these studies highlight that there may be something unique about the perceived type of morality of political in-group and out-group members that may be contributing to the similarity-liking effect in politics.