Jaroslav Tir on what impacts voting, pre-election polls ahead of US elections

A line of people place their ballots to vote.

What influences a person’s decision to vote? And can we trust data from polling projections? Ahead of the 2024 U.S. elections, Jaroslav Tir, professor of political science at CU Boulder and IBS fellow, and Shane Singh, Joshua W. Jones professor of public and international affairs and director of graduate studies in International Affairs at the University of Georgia, set out to examine American voting behavior. Specifically, they examined how recent exposure to US security threat news impacted voter’s motivation to hit the polls. Their results can be found in the London School of Economics and Political Science’s United States Politics and Policy blog.

Tir expanded on his findings with CU Boulder Today’s Bradley Worrell. He discusses how much we can trust pre-election polls and what factors to consider.

Jillian Turanovic on the profound impact of Proposition KK

A woman sits on the stairs with her elbows on her knees, palms in a prayer position in front of her face. She has a tattoo along her left forearm.

Jillian Turanovic, associate professor of sociology at CU Boulder and IBS faculty and fellow, recently wrote about the impact of Proposition KK for the Daily Camera. Ahead of the 2024 elections in Colorado, Jillian emphasized the need for tax dollars to be allocated to organizations that assist crime victims. Funding is critically low for these organizations, which provide crime victims with crucial resources like counseling and emergency funds. Read more about Proposition KK and its benefit to the Colorado community below.

Kacper Gradon on disinformation at the Athens Democracy Forum

Kacper Gradon stands at the Athens Democracy Forum. Gradon is a visiting IBS scholar and associate professor of both security and crime science at the University College London (UCL) and cybersecurity at Warsaw University of Technology

Disinformation. It threatens public health systems during natural disasters, pandemics and other crises. It can be weaponized for war, as Russia has done with Ukraine. It brings new waves of conspiracy theories and gives fuel to anti-science movements. And perhaps most acutely, it undermines the very fabric of democracy. 

Visiting IBS Scholar, Kacper Gradon, knows how perilous disinformation is for democracy. The associate professor of both security and crime science at the University College London (UCL) and cybersecurity at Warsaw University of Technology, was invited by the New York Times and the Democracy & Culture Foundation to present at the Athens Democracy Forum earlier this month. Gradon presented practical actions to “de-fuse” disinformation, including an integrated focus on education, regulation and technology. 

During his talk, Gradon provided practical examples from IBS and CU Boulder initiatives. Gradon pointed to the Shakespeare and Violence Prevention Tour from the Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence. The lies, slander and rumors that belie Shakespearean plays provide a concrete example of the consequences of disinformation for kids. Gradon hopes tools like these can make a meaningful impact.

“No matter how cliché or naïve it might sound, I trust that education (from a very early age) is the key to teach people critical thinking, fact checking and media literacy. Only this way can we protect society from falling prey to manipulation, meddling and brainwashing,” says Gradon.

For regulation, Gradon turned to the deliberations concerning the potential for class action lawsuits against Big Tech and discussions of the legal scholars, such as those of the CU Law School – Silicon Flatirons. Though he recognizes the difficulty in regulating disinformation, he hopes these recent debates will build a movement of accountability.  

“In my opinion, the technology that supports the creation and spread of disinformation (especially when it is monetized) must be regulated, and the developers and deployers of such tools must be held accountable for damage done,” says Gradon. “Since the technology enables and increases societal polarization and undermines democracy, it is time for a change.”

As for technology, Gradon believes tech in and of itself is not good or bad. It’s up to us to use technology to screen for disinformation. Gradon recommends three technological methods to help mitigate disinformation: 

  • Application of Large Language Models to both analyze disinformation and to offer counternarratives
  • Analyzing user interactions with true and false content
  • Studying multiple modalities (text, images, audio and video) to offer better predictive models

When asked what we can do to prevent disinformation, Gradon advises using open-source research and fact-checking websites, reverse image searches, and most importantly, common sense.  

“Develop a healthy habit of waiting before you click “like” or “share” on social media. Sometimes just a couple of minutes allows you to think more reasonably, maybe fact-check, contemplate the opposing viewpoints,” says Gradon. “If we just share uncontrollably, we’re further feeding the algorithms, exacerbating the pace and range of disinformation, and advancing polarization even more.”

Gradon’s talk, “Tools of Democracy: Disinfo De-fused – Protecting Democracy as Truth and Trust Decay,” was well received at the forum. Gradon felt hopeful seeing so many young attendees who were passionate about democracy and hopes this will usher in a new wave of change. 

“All of us live in heavily reinforced information bubbles. The algorithms that govern the technology we use actively strengthen these bubbles. We have to realize this and know of the consequences that this brings to our understanding of the world that surrounds us,” says Gradon.

The Athens Democracy Forum was October 1-3, 2024, in Athens, Greece. You can learn more about the forum and view talks here: https://www.athensdemocracyforum.com.

Hannah Brenkert-Smith and WiRē Team receive Pathfinding Partnerships Award

A firefighter works on a grassland fire.

The Wildfire Research (WiRē) Team will receive the Pathfinding Partnerships Award through the 2024 Governor’s Awards for High Impact Research on November 20. Institute of Behavioral Science Fellow and Associate Research Professor, Hannah Brenkert Smith, is a member of the team. Learn more about this prestigious award win and the WiRē Team’s impact on the community:

Sarah Goodrum, Violence Prevention Project awarded major grant to improve CU system safety

The Prevention Science Program out of the Institute of Behavioral Science at CU Boulder, along with the university’s Police Department, were awarded a $2 million grant from the U.S. Department of Justice last month. The grant will expand their efforts to prevent hate crimes across the CU system.

“I am thrilled to continue to partner with CUPD on this important work, and we’re excited about having the opportunity to partner with the other campuses in the CU system on violence prevention and bystander reporting, specifically to address bias-motivated incidents and crimes.”

Sarah Goodrum, IBS fellow and research professor in the Prevention Science Program.

Goodrum sat down with CU Boulder Today to discuss the Violence Prevention Project and its impact.

Sharon DeWitte on It’s a New Day Mendocino County Radio

Sharon Dewitte wears a white lab coat and holds a skull with both hands. She stands near a desk.

Sharon Dewitte, IBS faculty, fellow, and associate professor of anthropology at CU Boulder, was recently featured on a news segment for Mendocino County. DeWitte discussed her research on medieval plague, a history of the Black Plague, and what health outcomes can acquire from bones. Hear her interview with It’s a New Day host, Julie Beardsley, at the link below. Interview is on October 16, 2024.

New CRW grant to increase Coloradans’ access to trauma-informed, evidence-based services

A girl and her mother play with colored cards at a round table.

The Center for Resilience and Well-Being (CRW) was recently awarded a 3 million grant from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s (SAMHSA) National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN) with several community partners. The grant will fund the five-year project, “The Community Collective for Trauma-Informed, Evidence-Based Prevention and Treatment Services.”

The project has three main goals, all of which will involve deep collaboration with community partners: 

  1. Develop collaborative infrastructure for a community-based prevention hub that provides trauma-informed, evidence-based prevention services (TI-EBPs) for youth, families and schools.
  2. Improve behavioral health outcomes and reduce health disparities by implementing and sustaining culturally responsive TI-EBPs in local and rural communities.
  3. Promote long-term sustainability of culturally responsive TI-EBPs for youth and families exposed to trauma.

“It is an honor and a privilege to receive this award,” says CRW Director and Principal Investigator for the project,” Monica Fitzgerald. “It allows us to closely partner with youth-serving community agencies and schools in local Boulder County and across urban and rural parts of Colorado to increase youth and family access to the highest quality trauma-informed and evidence-based prevention and intervention supports. These programs and services will be provided in English and Spanish and embedded where families feel most comfortable seeking services and resources.”

Along with front range communities, Montrose and Garfield counties will receive access to TI-EBPs, facilitated through regional coordinators. Rural communities in particular experience higher rates of adverse childhood events and barriers to services, including issues with transportation, insurance, language, availability and stigma. 

The project also addresses critical gaps in access to linguistically and culturally responsive services. Despite 50% of the population speaking Spanish, Garfield County has a shortage of Spanish-lead services. Meghan Backofen, regional coordinator for Garfield County and child welfare treatment provider for Garfield’s Human Services Department, emphasizes the lack of parenting classes for Spanish-speaking parents and Spanish-speaking therapy and treatment providers as a key cause of health disparity for her community. 

In the past four years, two-thirds of family services provided by CRW and their partners in Boulder and Broomfield counties were delivered in Spanish, and the team is excited to expand these efforts with the SAMHSA grant. Their local team includes bilingual/ bicultural staff dedicated to community outreach, engagement, and service delivery, as well as amplifying the voices of families and ensuring cultural relevance and accessibility of all CRW programs and resources. Backofen looks forward to the grant increasing TI-EBP training and the availability of bilingual providers and services in Garfield County.

Along with Backofen, Jessica Gorrono, regional coordinator for Montrose County, is enthusiastic about the impact of TI-EBPs on her home county. 

“The funding from this award will allow the systems, professionals and community members that work each day to improve the well-being and mental health of the youth and families who are the future of this community,” says Gorrono. “I’m particularly excited about the opportunity to increase access to high quality prevention services to further build resilience in Montrose’s youth and families,” says Gorrono. 

The project will implement the following TI-EBPs within communities: 

The SAMHSA NCTSN program was a natural fit for the CRW project. The purpose of the grant program is to increase access to effective trauma and grief-focused treatment and service systems for children, adolescents, and families who have experienced traumatic events. Through the program, SAMHSA aims to raise the standard of care and improve access to evidence-based services for children experiencing trauma across the nation. By focusing on rural and high-need communities of Colorado, the CRW project will showcase the effectiveness and sustainability of implementing TI-EBPs nationwide. 

“Evidence-based prevention is one of the most powerful and cost-effective strategies for promoting health and reducing risk and behavioral health challenges for all youth, making it a powerful tool for promoting resilience and reducing health disparities,” says Shipman, who is PI on the project. “We are excited to expand this work with our partners and families throughout Colorado.”

To learn more about the project, visit the project website

To learn more about the grant program, visit the SAMHSA website and NCTSN website.

Jillian Turanovic, Emma Fridel awarded $1 million to lead study on red flag laws

Three police members walking down a hallway in a building. All three police wear uniforms.

Assistant Professor of Criminology at Florida State University, Emma Fridel, and Associate Professor of Sociology at CU Boulder and IBS Faculty Fellow, Jillian Turanovic, will lead a study to provide a “clear and sweeping look” at the effects of red flag laws. Red Flag Laws or RPOs, allow law enforcement agencies to file for the temporary removal of firearms from those who may be a danger to others or themselves. Currently, 19 states including Florida have RPOs, though little research has been done on their effects. The U.S. Department of Justice’s National Institute of Justice awarded $700,000 to the study, focusing on interpersonal violence. The National Collaborative on Gun Violence Research provided an additional $360,000 to expand the study’s scope to include effects on suicide. Learn more about the study from Florida State University’s College of Criminology & Criminal Justice News.