Cynthia Najdowski

Cynthia Najdowski is an Associate Professor and Area Head in the Department of Psychology at the University at Albany. She joined the university in 2013 and has established a prominent research program at the intersection of social psychology and the law.

Education:

• BA in Psychology from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington
• MA and PhD in Social Psychology from the University of Illinois at Chicago

Dr. Najdowski's research centers on the psychological causes of miscarriages of justice, particularly for marginalized, vulnerable, and victimized populations. Her work examines social psychological phenomena including stereotype threat, racial bias, stereotype content, attribution theory, social influences, stigma, psychosocial maturity, social reactions, and structural patriarchy. These studies address critical real-world issues such as racial and ethnic disparities in police contacts, false confessions, wrongful convictions, deterrence of adolescent offending, treatment of adolescent offenders, and reactions to sexual violence against women. Her interdisciplinary approach generates empirical knowledge to advance psychological science and improve equity in law, policy, and practice.

Her scholarship has been recognized with several nationally competitive awards. Additionally, her teaching and mentoring have been honored by the American Psychology-Law Society and the University at Albany.

Dr. Najdowski has secured over $460,000 in research funding from agencies including the National Science Foundation, the American Psychological Foundation, and the Russell Sage Foundation. She has co-edited two books: "Children as Victims, Witnesses, and Offenders: Psychological Science and the Law" (Guilford Press) and "Criminal Juries in the 21st Century: Psychological Science and the Law" (Oxford University Press). She is also actively involved in mentoring students.

She leads the PULSE lab, which focuses on psychological science and the law.