University of Wisconsin–Madison
Political Psychology (2025) Authors: Sosuke Okada, Nicholas Buttrick Abstract: American politics is rife with messages designed to anger one’s political enemies. In this paper, we propose and test a model suggesting that such inflammatory messages are effective because they signal that the messenger is unwilling to compromise with the groups they have offended. Taking the example …
Autism (2025) Authors: Nahime Aguirre Mtanous, Jamie Koenig, Melica Nikahd, Sarah Effertz, Sal Silinonte, J. Madison Hyer, Brittany Hand, Lauren Bishop Abstract: Autistic youth often receive applied behavior analysis (ABA) therapy, but some autistic adults who had ABA as youth say it harmed their mental health as adults. We looked at the relationship between ABA …
Autism Research (2025) Authors: Emily Skaletski, Rebekah Rodriguez, Sharon Gartland, Karla Ausderau, Lauren Bishop, James Li, Brittany Travers Abstract: Quality of life (QoL) is important for everyone and has been identified as a priority for autistic people. However, studies typically focus on caregiver-proxy-reported QoL and its related individual characteristics, even though self- and caregiver-proxy-reported QoL …
Journal of Family Violence (2025) Authors: Kaitlyn M. Sims, Mariel J. Barnes & Kate L. Walsh Abstract: Purpose Domestic Violence Housing First (DVHF) prioritizes removing survivors’ immediate barriers to safe and stable housing via unconditional and flexible financial assistance to reduce exposure to violence, increase stability, and improve physical and mental health. The current study …
Proceedings of the ACM Human-Computer Interaction (2025) Authors: Corey Jackson, Carsten Østerlund, Anand Vamsi, Alexander O. Smith, Karsten Crowston Abstract: We explore patterns of interaction with different learning resources (e.g., forums) to predict learning outcomes in an online citizen science project called Gravity Spy. To explore how volunteers engage with and benefit from these resources, …
Most Wisconsin schools protect students from discrimination against everything but this Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, October 13, 2025 By Natalie Eilbert A study of Wisconsin school board policies has found that nearly all districts have policies protecting students from discrimination based on sexual orientation and the vast majority protect students from discrimination based on gender identity. But …
Research led by IDS Graduate Fellow and Wisconsin School of Business PhD candidate Alexis Avery uncovers how historical biases around skin tone continue to shape workplace experiences, particularly in the assignment of hazardous tasks. Avery finds that managers draw on these biases when deciding who is best suited for dangerous work, leaving darker-skinned employees disproportionately …
On October 3rd, IDS offered a workshop given by Junior Visiting Scholar Ananya Ganesh about using large language models to assist with coding text-based data in research. The workshop was attended by UW-Madison graduate students and faculty and provided a hands-on introduction to automated or semi-automated coding. Workshop description: This workshop provided a practical guide …
Sociological Science (2023) Authors: Ariela Schachter, John Kuk, Max Besbris, Garrett Pekarek Abstract: Increasing Spanish fluency in the United States likely shapes ethnoracial group boundaries and inequality. We study a key site for group boundary negotiations—the housing market—where Spanish usage may represent a key source of information exchange between landlords and prospective renters. Specifically, we examine the use …
Qualitative Sociology (2024) Authors: Anna Rhodes, Max Besbris Abstract: Drawing on the human ecology framework, which describes social structure as dynamic and social action as environmentally contingent, this article examines behavior and attitudes around accepting help after disaster. Through two years of longitudinal in-depth interviews with 59 households in one community whose homes flooded during Hurricane Harvey, …