Tara L Mitchell, PhD

Contact Information:

Tara L Mitchell

Department of Psychology

Lock Haven University

401 N Fairview Rd

Lock Haven, PA 17745

Phone: (570)484-3866

Email: tmitchel@lhup.edu

Current Courses:

During the Fall 2009 semester, I am teaching Social Psychology, Psychology of Personality, and Applying Research Methods in Psychology. My schedule for Fall 2009 is below:

I can be reached most days between 8:00 am and 6:00 pm, unless I am in class or a meeting.

Background:

I am currently an Assistant Professor in the Psychology Department at Lock Haven University. I received my Ph.D. in Legal Psychology from Florida International University's Legal Psychology program. As part of that program, I have been trained in basic cognitive and social psychology, and their applications to the legal system. I have studied a variety of topics, including the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the cross-race effect in eyewitness identifications, and racial bias. My primary research interest is the influence of race on the legal system, from both an eyewitness and a jury decision-making perspective. A second research interest deals with perceptions of disabilities and their influence on employment law decisions. My thesis research, under the supervision of Dr. Margaret Kovera, investigated the influence of attributions of responsibility and work history on reasonable accommodation decisions under the ADA. My dissertation, under the supervision of Dr. Christian Meissner, is investigating the influence of the cross-race effect on the lineup construction process, from generating a witness description of the perpetrator to assessments of the overall lineup fairness. A copy of my curriculum vitae can be downloaded here as an Adobe Acrobat file.

For more information on graduate training in psychology, please visit the Psychology Undergraduate Advising page.

Teaching Interests:

I enjoy teaching a variety of courses in cognitive, social, legal, and industrial/organizational psychology. I have taught courses at both Florida International University and Lock Haven University. For more information on the courses I have taught at FIU, please click here. For information on the courses I have taught at Lock Haven University, please click here.

Research Interests:

My research interests are varied, but center around the influence of social constructs, such as race, gender, and disabilities, on the legal system. I have developed a program of research that investigates the underlying cognitive mechanisms of the cross-race effect in eyewitness identifications. I am also developing a program of research on the influence of defendant race on jury decision-making, particularly taking into account the race of the juror, the type of crime, and judicial instructions. Finally, I am interested in pursuing the influence of stereotypes and attributions regarding individuals with disabilities on employment law decisions. I have had the opportunity to collaborate with several individuals as part of my research. They include: Dr. Ronald P Fisher, Dr. Ryann M. Leonard (formerly Haw), Dr. Kimberly MacLin, and Dr. Gary Wells.

For more information on conducting psycho-legal research, please visit the Psychology and the Law Research page.

Personal:

For more information about me, visit Tara's Corner.