Paul Skolnick
Professor Skolnick is interested in psychological applications to the legal system, specifically judicial decision making, eyewitness identification and police interrogations. For example, what roles do extra-legal defendant and juror characteristics such as race and status play in jury decisions? When is the status of the defendant a protective shield and when is it a liability? How effective are the judges instructions to the jury? Does the jury understand legal instructions and do they follow them?
Primary Interests:
- Applied Social Psychology
- Culture and Ethnicity
- Judgment and Decision Making
- Law and Public Policy
- Person Perception
- Social Cognition
Journal Articles:
- Shaw, J. I., & Skolnick, P. (1999). Weapon focus and sex differences in eyewitness accuracy: Arousal vs. salience. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 29(11), 2328-2341.
- Shaw, J. I., & Skolnick, P. (1996). When is defendant status a shield or a liability?: A replication and extension. Law and Human Behavior, 20(4), 431-442.
- Shaw, J. I., & Skolnick, P. (1995). Effects of prohibitive and informative judicial instructions on jury decision making. Social Behavior and Personality, 23(4), 319-326.
- Shaw, J. I., & Skolnick, P. (1994). Sex differences, weapon focus and eyewitness reliability. Journal of Social Psychology, 134(4), 413-420.
- Skolnick, P., & Shaw, J. I. (2001). A Comparison of eyewitness and physical evidence on mock jury decision making. Criminal Justice and Behavior.
- Skolnick, P., & Shaw, J. I. (1997). The O.J. Simpson criminal verdict: Racism or status shield? Journal of Social Issues, 53(3), 503-516.
- Skolnick, P., & Shaw, J. I. (1994). Is defendant status a liability or a shield?: Crime severity and professional relatedness. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 24(20), 1827-1836.
Other Publications:
- Skolnick, P., & Shaw, J. I. (2001). Effects of criminal motivation, ability, and opportunity on mock jurors' verdicts. In R. Roesch, R. R. Corrado, & R. J. Dempster (Eds.), Psychology in the courts: International advances in knowledge. London, Routledge.
Courses Taught:
- Dynamics of Individual Behavior
- Psychology and the Law
- Social Psychology
Paul Skolnick
Department of Psychology
California State University, Northridge
18111 Nordhoff Street
Northridge, California 91330
United States of America
- Phone: (818) 677-2827