My research interests largely focus on applied memory issues such as eyewitness identification. In particular, I am interested in how system and estimator variables (conditions that are and are not under the control of the criminal justice system, respectively) impact the ability for eyewitnesses to make an accurate identification. For example, police commonly use a one-person identification procedure known as a showup, and my research has consistently demonstrated how this procedure is susceptible to errors under several situations (e.g., conducted immediately or compared to a 3-member lineup). One of my current lines of research involves examining how prior familiarity and suspect race influence eyewitness confidence and accuracy.
Additionally, I enjoy helping students navigate the steps behind designing and implementing their own research ideas. Students in my lab have done research projects on topics such as the influence of stress on false memory, the effect of glucose on face recognition, and the relationship between gambling behavior and decision making.
Courses Taught
- PSY 319 – Cognition
- PSY 350 – Cognitive Neuroscience
- PSY 371 – Eyewitness Memory
- PSY 205 Research Design & PSY 205L – Research Design Lab
- PSY 208 – Research Statistics
Research Interests
- Eyewitness Identification
- Recognition Memory
- Jury Decision Making
- Face Familiarity
Education
- Ph.D. in Educational Psychology, Texas A&M University – Commerce
- M.A. in Experimental Psychology, University of Alabama at Huntsville
- B.A. in Psychology, University of Oklahoma
Publications & Articles
- Carlson, C. A., Wooten, A. R., Carlson, M. A. (2023). Was he the perpetrator or a bystander? Testing theories of unconscious transference for eyewitness identification. Journal of Applied Research in Memory and Cognition. Advanced online publication.
- Lockamyeir, R. F., Carlson, C. A., Wooten, A. R., Hemby, J. A., & Jones, A. R. (2023). Keep it simple: Concise instructions may help jurors devalue eyewitness courtroom confidence when evaluating suspect guilt. Psychology Crime & Law
- Carlson, C. A., Hemby, J. A., Wooten, A. R., Jones, A. R., Lockamyeir, R. F., Carlson, M. A., Dias, J. L., & Whittington, J. E. (2021). Testing encoding specificity and the Diagnostic Feature-detection theory of eyewitness identification, with implications for showups, lineups, and partially disguised perpetrators. Cognitive Research: Principles & Implications, 6(14), 1-21
- Wooten, A. R., Carlson, C. A., Lockamyeir, R. F., Carlson, M. A., Jones, A. R.., & Hemby, J. (2020). The number of fillers may not matter as long as they all fit the description: The effect of simultaneous lineup size on eyewitness identification. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 34(3), 590-604.