University of Texas at El Paso
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.
Our Team
Our research team consists of 23 undergraduate/post-graduate research assistants and two graduate students, led by faculty mentor Dr. April Gile Thomas.
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The Adolescent Development and Delinquency Laboratory at The University of Texas at El Paso, is currently accepting applications for Research Assistants. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. At this time, all research is remote to allow for adherence to safety guidelines during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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For more information, see "For Students."
News & Events
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.
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.
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.