Jennifer J. Ratcliff
- Media Contact
- SPN Mentor
My primary research program focuses on understanding the processes by which individuals develop and maintain both positive and negative attitudes toward marginalized outgroups. Traditionally, research designed to improve intergroup relations has singularly focused on reducing prejudice and eliminating negative attitudes and stereotypes. In my research program, I instead conceptualize intergroup relations as a garden. That is, although removing weeds (i.e., prejudice and hate) is critical to creating positive intergroup relations, I argue that it is also vital to understand how the seeds of outgroup liking are planted. To this end, my research explores two antecedents for outgroup liking and prejudice: (a) cultural displays exhibited by the group in question, (e.g., pride displays), and (b) socio-cultural norms (e.g., expectations regarding how men and women should behave in a given society). My work in this area additionally elucidates the distinct implications of outgroup liking and prejudice for behavior toward marginalized groups. This work has been applied to understanding how to bring about positive relations between marginalized groups and majority groups in America (e.g., gay men and heterosexual individuals; Caucasian Americans and African Americans), as well as in Israel (e.g., Palestinian Israelis and Jewish Israelis).
In my second line of research, I explore the influence of perceptual factors on social judgment. More precisely, I examine the impact of perceptual constraints -- such as the relative salience of one actor over another during an ongoing interaction -- on the way people interpret and ultimately evaluate videotaped criminal confessions.
Primary Interests:
- Attitudes and Beliefs
- Gender Psychology
- Intergroup Relations
- Law and Public Policy
- Person Perception
- Prejudice and Stereotyping
- Sexuality, Sexual Orientation
- Social Cognition
Journal Articles:
- Lassiter, G. D., Ratcliff, J. J., Ware, L. J., & Irvin, C. R. (2006). Videotaped confessions: Panacea or Pandora's Box? Law and Policy, 28, 192-210.
- Lassiter, G. D., Ware, L. J., Ratcliff, J. J., & Irvin, C. R. (in press). Evidence of the camera perspective bias in authentic videotaped interrogations: Implications for emerging reform in the criminal justice system. Legal and Criminological Psychology.
- Markman, K. D., Elizaga, R. A., Ratcliff, J. J., & McMullen, M. N. (2007). The interplay between counterfactual reasoning and feedback dynamics in producing inferences about the self. Thinking and Reasoning, 13, 188-206.
- Ratcliff, J .J., & Lassiter, G. D. (2007). On the induction and consequences of variation in behavior perception. Current Psychology, 26(1), 16-36.
- Ratcliff, J. J., Lassiter, G. D., Markman, K. D., & Snyder, C. J. (2006). Gender differences in attitudes toward gay men and lesbians: The role of motivation to respond without prejudice. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 33, 1325-133
- Ratcliff, J. J., Lassiter, G. D., Schmidt, H. C., & Snyder, C. J. (2006). Camera perspective bias in videotaped confessions: Experimental evidence of its perceptual basis. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Applied, 12, 197-206.
Other Publications:
- Lassiter, G. D., & Ratcliff, J. J. (2004). Exposing coercive influences in the criminal justice system: An agenda for legal psychology in the 21st century. In G. D. Lassiter (Ed.), Interrogations, confessions, and entrapment. New York: Kluwer Academic/ Plenum Press.
- Lassiter, G. D., Lindberg, M. J., Ratcliff, J. J., & Ware, L. J. (contract pending). Top-down influences on event perception. In E. Balcetis & G. D. Lassiter (Eds.), Top-down influences on visual perception. New York: Psychology Press.
- Lassiter, G. D., Ware, L. J., Lindberg, M. J., & Ratcliff, J. J. (under contract). Videotaping police interrogations: Dos and don'ts. In G. D. Lassiter & C. A. Meissner (Eds.), Interrogations and confessions: Current research, practice, and policy. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
- Markman, K. D., Ratcliff, J. J., Mizoguchi, N., McMullen, M. N., & Elizaga, R. A. (2007). Assimilation and contrast in counterfactual thinking and other mental simulation-based comparisons. In D. A. Stapel & J. Suls (Eds.), Assimilation and contrast in social psychology (pp. 314-347). New York: Psychology Press.
- Pittinsky, T. L., Ratcliff, J. J., & Maruskin, L. (2008). Coexistence in Israel: A national study. Center for Public Leadership, John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA.
Courses Taught:
- Introduction to Psychology
- Research Methods
- Social Psychology
- Statistics
Jennifer J. Ratcliff
Department of Psychology
The College at Brockport, SUNY
350 New Campus Drive
Brockport, New York 14420
United States of America
- Phone: (585) 395-2685