Forensic &
Legal Psychology

Public Service

Dr. Williams has been a leader in conducting research on issues of mental health and trauma in public service workers. At the University of Connecticut she collaborates with the Center for the Promotion of Health in the New England Workplace to help better understand issues affecting the mental health of correctional officers. Prior to her time at UConn, she served on the Mental Health Diversion Board in Louisville, Kentucky.

Last year, she conducted an evaluation and critical report for the Office of the Auditor General of Canada (OAG), with a focus on six key departments: the RCMP, Correctional Services, Border Services Agency, Public Safety, Public Prosecution Service, and the Department of Justice.

→ Read the full final report of the OAG that was tabled in Parliament

Law Enforcement

Improving our policing systems to promote fairness.

Williams, M., Bartlett, A., Zare, M., Custer, N., & Osman, M. (2024). Sexual harassment and abuse in law enforcement: Best practices for creating safety for female officers. The Police Journal: Theory, Practice and Principles, 97(2), 205-220. https://doi.org/10.1177/0032258X231156714

Williams, M., Osman, M., Gran-Ruaz, S., Strauss, D., & Zare, M. (2023). Performative shooting exercises do not predict real-world racial bias in police officers. Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science, 55(2), 142–152.

Williams, M. T. & Kanter, J. W. (2020). The trauma of violent police videos. In L. J. Siegel & M. C. McCormick, Criminology in Canada: Theories, Patterns and Typologies, 7ce (pp. 62-63). Nelson Education. ISBN: 9780176724443

Children and Family Court

Marginalized identities are subject to bias in custody disputes.

Williams, M. T., Faber, S. C., Zare, M., & Abdulrehman, R. Y. (2024). Intersectional racial and gender bias in family court. Discover Psychology, 4(178), 1-22. https://doi.org/10.1007/s44202-024-00282-8

Family court poses a high risk for mental health professionals.

Faber, S., Wu, E., & Bartlett, A. (2023). Abuse of power in disciplinary actions of a state psychology licensing board: Inequitable outcomes and early career psychologists. Frontiers in Psychology: Forensic and Legal Psychology, 14.

Addressing Violence & Aggression

Making the world a safer place.

DeLapp, R. C. T., Chasson, G., Swerbilow, J., Gibby, B., Tellawi, G., & Williams, M. T. (2018). The normative nature of aggressive intrusive thinking among an underserved incarcerated population compared to a student sample. International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology, 62(13), 4142-4157. https://doi.org/10.1177/0306624X18758534

Sawyer, B., DeLapp, R. C. T., & Williams, M. T. (2016). Community Violence Exposure, Racial Discrimination, and Barriers to Treatment: Implications for African American Males in Counseling. In W. Ross (Ed.), Counseling African American Males: Effective Therapeutic Interventions and Approaches (pp. 33-60). Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing.

Williams, M., Bruce, S. L., Combs, J., & Alvey, H. (2014, November). Satisfaction with a Six-Week Intervention for At-Risk Juveniles: The Gentleman's Academy Program. Report for the Louisville Metro Police Department and Greater Louisville Inc., Center for Mental Health Disparities, University of Louisville. https://doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.1.2375.3845

Jury Selection

Critical scholarship for advancing fairness in the courtroom.

Faber, S. C., Strauss, D., Gran-Ruaz, S., La Torre, J., Bartlett, A., Faber, I., Levinson, A., & Williams, M. T. (2022). A call to use psychology for anti-racist jury selection. Practice Innovations, 7(3), 203–222. https://doi.org/10.1037/pri0000172

Levinson, A., Williams, M. T., Faber, S. C., Strauss, D., Gran-Ruaz, S, La Torre, J., & Bartlett, A. (2022). Challenging jurors' racism. Gonzaga Law Review, 57(3), 365-424.

Levinson, A., Williams, M. T., Faber, S. C., Strauss, D., Gran-Ruaz, S., & Bartlett, A. (2023). Challenging jurors' racism. In S. Saltzman (Ed.), Civil Rights Litigation and Attorney Fees Annual Handbook (Vol. 39) (pp. 519-588). National Police Accountability Project of the National Lawyers Guild. Clark Boardman Callaghan. Eagan, MN: Thomson Reuters.

Race & Psychedelic Use

The War on Drugs impacts behavior and enforcement.

Williams, M. T., Cabral, V., & Faber, S. C. (in press). Psychedelics and racial justice. International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11469-023-01160-5

Davis, A. K., Arterberry, B. J., Xina, Y., Agin-Liebese, G., Schwarting, C., & Williams, M. T. (2022). Race, ethnic, and sex differences in prevalence of and trends in hallucinogen consumption among lifetime users in the United States between 2015-2019. Frontiers in Epidemiology, 2, 876706. https://doi.org/10.3389/fepid.2022.876706

Jahn, Z. W., Lopez, J., de la Salle, S., Faber, S., & Williams, M. T. (2021). Racial/Ethnic differences in prevalence for hallucinogen use by age cohort: Findings from the 2018 National Survey on Drug Use and Health. Journal of Psychedelic Studies, 5(2), 69-82. https://doi.org/10.1556/2054.2021.00166 [focused on criminalization]

Racism in Social Systems

How systemic racism drives our institutions.

Faber, S., Khanna Roy, A., Michaels, T. I., & Williams, M. T. (2023). The weaponization of medicine: Early psychosis in the Black community and the need for racially informed mental health care. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 14, 1-16. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1098292

Williams, M. T., Faber, S. C., Nepton, A., & Ching, T. (2023). Racial justice allyship requires civil courage: Behavioral prescription for moral growth and change. American Psychologist, 78(1), 1–19. https://doi.org/10.1037/amp0000940

Faber, S., Williams, M. T., Metzger, I. W., MacIntyre, M. M., Strauss, D., Duniya, C. G., Sawyer, K., Cénat, J. M., & Goghari, V. (2023). Lions at the gate: How weaponization of policy prevents people of colour from becoming professional psychologists in Canada. Canadian Psychology, 64(4), 335–354. https://doi.org/10.1037/cap0000352