University of Texas at El Paso
Interested in participating in a research study?
Welcome to the Adolescent Development and Delinquency Lab!
This research laboratory is based at the University of Texas at El Paso, under the direction of Dr. April Gile Thomas.
Our research examines adolescent behavior and juvenile delinquency using a developmental framework. We conduct primarily quantitative research that investigates predictors and consequences of juvenile delinquency and adolescent risk behavior. Our research addresses topics such as juvenile transfer to adult court, legal knowledge, sexting, sleep problems, peer influence, parent-adolescent relationships, and more.
News & Events
December 18, 2022
Research Assistant Erin Nelson graduates UTEP
Erin plans to go to Alabama starting in January 2023 to be a space camp counselor with kids at the NASA affiliated US Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville. Erin will go to UT Arlington in the fall to pursue a Master’s of Social Work. Erin completed a year in the lab and we are so proud of her!
March 19, 2022
Isabelle Clough presents at APLS 2022
Isabelle Clough presented data from her thesis at the American Psychology-Law Society Conference 2022. She presented on how jurors view information on defendant age, gender, and psychosocial maturity when making decisions about guilt and forming attitudes about sentencing.
May 18, 2021
Dr. April Thomas awarded U-CURED Grant
Dr. April Thomas was awarded funds from the UTEP Course-based Undergraduate Research Experiences Development (U-CURED) Program to help integrate research and scholarly inquiry into her Psychology and the Law course in the Fall 2021 semester. The U-CURED program aims to promote undergraduate involvement in research and places an emphasis on the enhancement of students’ engagement in university activities, critical thinking, teamwork, academic self-efficacy, and preparation for and entry into advanced degrees.
February 18, 2021
Isabelle Clough appointed as SPSSI GSC Communications Focus Member-at-Large
Graduate student, Isabelle Clough, was selected as the Communications Focus Member-at-Large for the Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues (SPSSI) Graduate Student Committee (GSC). Isabelle will be conducting targeted outreach to SPSSI student members and reviewing and editing submissions for the GSC section of SPSSI's newsletter.
November 03, 2020
Mayra Solis earns UTEP's RISE Award
Undergraduate Research Assistant, Mayra Solis, has been awarded entry into UTEP's RISE Scholars Research Training Program. The program features training for underrepresented minority undergraduates, and is intended for students pursuing graduate school and a research career.
August 11, 2020
Daisy Guzman invited as panelist on Latin Xs in Social Work Podcast
Lab alumna, Daisy Guzman, was invited to speak in a podcast about her academic journey and her ongoing experience in the field of social work. Find the podcast by searching for La Mesa Latina Episode 20 on your preferred podcast streaming app.
May 13, 2020
Isabelle Clough awarded $1330 Dodson Research Grant
Graduate student, Isabelle Clough, was awarded a $1,330 Dodson Research Grant by the University of Texas at El Paso's Graduate School. Isabelle will be using these funds to study how a juvenile defendant's age, gender, and psychosocial maturity influence mock jurors' perceptions of the defendant's culpability, guilt, and appropriateness of sentencing severity.
March 02, 2020
Arielle Marquez awarded AP-LS Access Path to Psychology and Law Fellowship
Undergraduate researcher Arielle Marquez was awarded the Access Path to Psychology and Law Fellowship through the American Psychology-Law Society. This award, established to support underrepresented students, will fund Arielle's work on a mentored research project. Results from the project will be submitted to the AP-LS annual conference.
December 11, 2019
Isabelle Clough successfully proposes thesis
Doctoral student, Isabelle Clough, successfully proposed her Master's thesis on December 11. Her research study will explore how jurors' perceptions of defendants' psychosocial maturity, age, and gender influence their sentencing decisions. Congratulations Isabelle!
May 05, 2019
Tiffany Vasquez and Adria Corral awarded 2019 Summer Institute in Survey Research Techniques Diversity Fellowship
Congratulations to Elizabeth Purser for receiving the 2019 Summer Institute in Survey Research Techniques Diversity Fellowship at the University of Michigan! She will be joining Tiffany and Adria on this two and a half week survey methodology program.
January 30, 2019
Elizabeth Purser earns APL-LS Access Path to Psychology & Law Award
Congratulations to undergraduate Research Assistant, Elizabeth Purser, for being awarded the AP-LS Access Path to Psychology and Law Award! This award is presented to students underrepresented in the field to increase diversity within the psychology and law community.
June 19, 2018
Dr. April Thomas interviewed on ABC News about effects of family separations at the border
Dr. Thomas was interviewed by ABC News regarding the developmental consequences for children as a result of the family separations taking place at the border. Dr. Thomas stated, "Especially for young children, being separated can damage the attachment relationship that they have with their parents. Attachment has consistently been found to be one of the best predictors of child outcomes.".
April 21, 2018
Student researchers present at UTEP COURI Symposium
Undergraduate Research Assistants Tiffany Vasquez and Joseph Reyes presented their research titled "What are my legal rights? Parents' and adolescents' knowledge of legal rights" (co-authors Britney Perez, Roberto Moran, and Kiran Misra) at UTEP's COURI Symposium. Their study reveals the limited knowledge of adolescents' legal rights among both youth and parents. This research also finds that adolescents' knowledge of legal rights is correlated with parental knowledge, suggesting that parents may be one means through which adolescents become socialized in their understanding of their legal rights.
March 23, 2024
American Psychology-Law Society Conference 2024
Post-bacc research assistant Paulina Porras and undergraduate research assistant Melissa Hoffman presented their poster "Examining the Associations between Maternal Hostility and Adolescent Offending in a Latino Sample: The Moderating Role of Ethnic Identity" at the 2024 American Psychology-Law Society Conference in Los Angeles, California.
April 19, 2023
Isabelle Clough recognized as Outstanding Graduate Student for UTEP
Isabelle Clough will be recognized as the Outstanding Graduate Student. Isabelle’s success is reflected across a number of domains including, but not limited to, peer reviewed publications, conference presentations, awards and honors and citizenship at the departmental and professional level. Amongst her activities, Isabelle is the Graduate Student Council Chairperson of the Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues, which is an international psychological organization. Congratulations Isabelle!
September 21, 2022
Anna Drozdova receives SRCD Dissertation Research Award
Anna Drozdova is one of nine scholars to receive the 14th Annual
Student and Early Career Council Dissertation Research Funding Awards. She was awarded $2000 to fund her dissertation study on youth social media usage and substance use. Congratulations!
June 19, 2021
Claudia Cota joins AD&D Lab and receives UTEP's Summer Bridge Fellowship
Claudia Cota has joined the AD&D Lab as a first-year doctoral student starting Summer 2021. Claudia was additionally awarded funds through UTEP's Summer Bridge to the Doctorate Program--a fellowship designed to prepare incoming doctoral students for the rigors of a Ph.D. program. This 8-week full-time program is focused on jumpstarting the first-year research project, attending professional development workshops, and developing other research skills necessary to succeed in graduate school and beyond.
May 13, 2021
Dr. April Thomas awarded Career Enhancement Award by UTEP's College of Liberal Arts
UTEP's College of Liberal Arts has recognized Dr. April Thomas with a $5,000 Career Enhancement Award for Summer 2021. This award promotes peer reviewed projects that are designed to enhance the careers of UTEP scholars, as well as the intellectual environment at UTEP. Awardees are recognized for their important roles within their respective disciplines and are expected to present the work they have completed during the funding period to a broad audience interested in learning more about the scholarship going on in UTEP’s College of Liberal Arts.
February 18, 2021
Ashley Lindquist accepted into UTEP's Clinical Psychology MA program
Undergraduate Research Assistant, Ashley Lindquist, was accepted into the Clinical Psychology MA program at the University of Texas at El Paso. Ashley will start her first year of graduate study in the Fall 2021 semester.
January 27, 2021
Mayra Solis accepted into Human Development and Family Studies doctoral program at Pennsylvania State University
Research Assistant, Mayra Solis, was accepted to attend the Human Development and Family Studies doctoral program at Pennsylvania State University for her graduate study, starting in the 2021-2022 academic year.
November 03, 2020
Isabelle Clough successfully defends thesis
Graduate student, Isabelle Clough, successfully defended her Master's thesis November 3, 2020. Isabelle's thesis focused on how juvenile defendants' developmental characteristics influence mock jurors' perspectives about criminal responsibility, guilt, and sentencing.
June 03, 2020
Dr. Caitlin Cavanagh featured in MSU article for work on Daily Experiences during COVID-19 Study
Dr. Caitlin Cavanagh, a collaborator on the ongoing Daily Experiences during COVID-19 Study, was featured in a Michigan State University article written June 3, 2020. The article highlights the recent National Science Foundation RAPID Grant award through which the study is being funded, as well as the study's many potential implications.
May 04, 2020
Anna Drozdova awarded $350 UTEP Dodson Travel Funds and $350 UTEP SGA Appropriations
Graduate student, Anna Drozdova, was awarded $350 in UTEP Dodson Travel Funds and $350 in appropriations from the UTEP Student Government Association to attend a Network Analysis workshop by Curran-Bauer Analytics. Anna will be utilizing skills gained through this workshop to study how characteristics of incarcerated juveniles' social networks impact their institutional offending and recidivism patterns.
March 01, 2020
Arielle Marquez earned $4800 MERITUS award through UTEP
Undergraduate Research Assistant, Arielle Marquez, was awarded $4800 for completion of an independent project through UTEP's MERITUS program. Arielle's project, titled "Examining the association between adolescent gang membership, exposure to violence and stress", was completed over the course of the Fall 2019 and Spring 2020 semesters.
May 23, 2019
Elizabeth Purser awarded 2019 Summer Institute in Survey Research Techniques Diversity Fellowship
Congratulations to undergraduate Research Assistant, Elizabeth Purser, for receiving the 2019 Summer Institute in Survey Research Techniques Diversity Fellowship at the University of Michigan! She will be joining Tiffany and Adria on this two and a half week survey methodology program.
April 13, 2019
UTEP COURI Symposium
Join us at UTEP’s COURI symposium today to see outstanding undergraduate research, such as this presentation by MERITUS award recipient and AD&D Lab member, Mariana Cardenas Dominguez. Her work suggests Hispanic adolescents may develop their legal attitudes from a process of parental legal socialization, whereas non-Hispanic adolescents develop their attitudes via alternate sources.
March 16, 2019
American Psychology-Law Society Conference 2019
Undergraduate researchers Adria Corral, Elizabeth Purser, and Joseph Reyes presented their poster "Association with Delinquent Peers: Influence on Adolescents' Perception of the Law" at the 2019 American Psychology-Law Society Conference in Portland, Oregon.
September 08, 2018
AD&D lab receives the American Psychological Foundation's 2018 Visionary Grant for research on adolescent sleep
Drs. April Gile Thomas and Caitlin Cavanagh received the 2018 Visionary Grant from the American Psychological Foundation to fund their research examining the effects of incarceration on adolescent sleep.
April 14, 2018
Dr. April Thomas presents at Society for Research on Adolescence Biennial Meeting
Dr. April Gile Thomas presented her research titled "Adolescents' Susceptibility To Maternal & Peer Influence: Effects on Risk Behavior" at the Society for Research on Adolescence Biennial Meeting April 14 in Minneapolis, MN. This research is the first experimental study to directly compare whether adolescents are more influenced by their mothers or friends.
March 23, 2024
American Psychology-Law Society Conference 2024
Post-bacc research assistant Alicia Rivas presented her poster "Exploring Associations between Callous-Unemotional Traits, Psychosocial Maturity and Offending in a Sample of Justice-Involved and Community Adolescents" at the 2024 American Psychology-Law Society Conference in Los Angeles, California.
December 18, 2022
Research Assistant Anasofia Siqueiros graduates UTEP
Anasofia plans on applying for a doctoral degree in Occupational Therapy. She is working at El Paso Physical Therapy and plans to continue studying criminal psychology. Anasofia completed one year of service in the lab. Congratulations, Anasofia!
June 1, 2021
Anna Drozdova appointed as Student Awards Officer for the APS Student Caucus Executive Board
Doctoral student Anna Drozdova has been elected as the Student Awards Officer (SAO) for the Association for Psychological Science Student Caucus Executive Board. Anna will be coordinating the awards process for the RISE and Student Research Awards during the 2021-22 academic year.
May 7, 2021
Anna Drozdova successfully defends Master's thesis
Graduate student, Anna Drozdova, successfully defended her Master's thesis Friday, May 7th. Anna's thesis focused on the associations between juvenile offenders' friendship characteristics--specifically, stability and homophily--and juveniles' re-offending and substance use.
February 18, 2021
Anna Drozdova selected as SRA Blog Process Associate Editor
Graduate student, Anna Drozdova, has been selected as the Associate Editor for the Society for Research on Adolescence (SRA) online blog process. Anna will be reviewing and editing incoming blogs for the SRA website, as well as writing blogs to be posted to the website.
September 04, 2020
Doctoral students Isabelle Clough and Anna Drozdova lead Introduction to Statistics Workshop
Ph.D. students Isabelle Clough and Anna Drozdova led an Introduction to Statistics Workshop for the lab's undergraduate Research Assistants (RAs) Friday, September 4. RAs interested in presenting at future conferences attended the workshop to hone their statistics skills and learn how to apply statistics techniques to their research questions of interest
May 27, 2020
Dr. April Thomas recognized for NSF RAPID Grant award and NSF REU award, speaks at UTEP's Virtual Research Forum
Dr. April Thomas was recognized by the Office of Research and Sponsored Projects during UTEP's May Research Forum for her National Science Foundation (NSF) Research Experiences for Undergraduates award. This award has allowed her to financially support two undergraduate student researchers in the Adolescent Development and Delinquency Lab.
As a panelist for the virtual forum, Dr. Thomas also presented preliminary findings from the Daily Experiences during COVID-19 Study, which explores how at-risk teens and their parents are affected by the global COVID-19 pandemic.
May 01, 2020
Dr. April Thomas awarded NSF RAPID Grant to study impacts of COVID-19 pandemic on at-risk teens and their parents
The National Science Foundation has awarded RAPID Grant to Dr. April Thomas, which will allow her to conduct research on the impacts of COVID-19 on adolescents and their parents. This research will examine how at-risk youth (specifically incarcerated and justice-involved juveniles) may be particularly impacted by the global pandemic.
May 08, 2019
Daisy Guzman awarded travel funds to attend Behavioral Health Graduate Recruitment Fair at UT Austin and grad tour at ASU
Undergraduate Research Assistant, Daisy Guzman, has been chosen for a travel award to attend the Behavioral Health Graduate Recruitment Fair at the University of Texas, Austin and a fully funded graduate school tour at Arizona State University in May.
March 16, 2019
American Psychology-Law Society Conference 2019
Undergraduate Research Assistants Joseph Reyes, Desiree Pimentel, Tiffany Vasquez, and Roberto Moran presented their poster titled "What Are My Legal Rights? Parents' and Adolescents' Knowledge of Legal Rights" at the 2019 American Psychology-Law Society Conference in Portland, Oregon.
September 01, 2018
AD&D lab receives NSF Grant to study effects of incarceration on adolescent development
Drs. April Gile Thomas (University of Texas at El Paso) and Caitlin Cavanagh (Michigan State University) have received a grant from the National Science Foundation in the area of Law and Social Sciences to fund their research investigating the effects of incarceration on adolescent social functioning and mental health.
April 21, 2018
Student researchers present at UTEP COURI Symposium
Undergraduate Research Assistants, Joseph A. Reyes and Elizabeth Purser, presented their research "Association with delinquent peers: Influence on Adolescents' rule orientation" (co-authors Vanessa Hernandez and Amri Viruet) at the UTEP Campus Office of Undergraduate Research Initiatives (COURI) Symposium on April 14, 2018. This research team found that adolescents who associate with a greater number of delinquent friends tend to be less oriented to obeying rules and laws.