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Kevin Carlsmith, Associate Professor of Psychology

Kevin CarlsmithMy research examines theories of morality and justice in a social psychological context. I study how ordinary people perceive social transgressions and their intuitions about the proper consequences for these transgressions. I focus on the interaction between personal intuitions of justice and the formal codes of the individual's organization or society and the consequences that arise from a discrepancy between the two.

Current projects investigate whether people punish for the purpose of deterrence, or to give the perpetrator his or her "just deserts." Recent findings suggest that although people behave in line with a retributive or just deserts theory, they frequently justify their behavior on the grounds of deterrence. It appears that people are not aware of this discrepancy, and that this misunderstanding of their own motives can actually lead people to support laws that, when enacted, will be seen as deeply unjust.

CV (pdf)

 

Contact Information

Office: Psychology
Current Courses
Mail: 109 Olin Hall
Phone: (315)228-7399
 Email: kcarlsmith@mail.colgate.edu

 Department Affiliation

Psychology Department

Teaching & Research

Title
Associate Professor of Psychology (2003)

Degree
PhD, Princeton University, 2001
MA, Princeton University, 1998
MA, University of New Hampshire, 1996
BS, Lewis & Clark College, 1989

Teaching Experience
Instructor, White Mountain School, Littleton, NH 1991-1994;
Instructor, University of Virginia 2001-2003;
Assistant Professor, Colgate University, 2003 - 2009;
Associate Professor, Colgate University, 2009 - present.

Specialties
Social psychology, psychology and law

Selected Publications
(Links are PDFs)

Carlsmith, K. M. & Sood, A. M. (2009). The fine line between interrogation and retribution. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology.

Carlsmith, K. M., Wilson, T. D., & Gilbert, D. T (in press). The paradoxical consequences of revenge. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.
 

Wilson, T. D., Aronson, E. & Carlsmith, K. M. (in press).   Experimentation in Social Psychology.  In D. Gilbert, S. Fiske, and G. Lindzey (Eds.) Handbook of Social Psychology, 5th edition, NY: Oxford University Press.

Carlsmith, K.M., and Darley, J.M. (2008). Psychological aspects of retributive justice. In M.P. Zanna (ED.), Advances in Experimental Social Psychology, (Vol. 40, pp 193-236) San Diego, CA: Elsevier.

Carlsmith, K.M., (2008). On justifying punishment: The discrepancy between words and actions. Social Justice Research, 21, 119-137.

Carlsmith, K.M., Monahan, J., Evans, A. (2007). The function of punishment in the "civil" commitment of sexually violent predators.Behavioral Sciences & the Law.

Carlsmith, K.M. (2006). The roles of retribution and utility in determining punishment. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 42, 437-451.

Carlsmith, K.M. (2003). Wiring the ivory tower: What you need to know about technology. In J.M. Darley, M.P. Zanna, & H.L. Roediger (Eds.), The Compleat Academic: A Career Guide.Washington, DC: APA Press.

Carlsmith, K.M., Darley, J.M., & Robinson, P.H. (2002). Why do we punish? Deterrence and just deserts as motives for punishment. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 83, 284-299.

Carlsmith, K.M., & Cooper, J. (2002). A persuasive example of collaborative learning. Teaching of Psychology, 29, 132-136.

Darley, J.M., Carlsmith, K.M., & Robinson, P.H. (2001). The ex ante function of the criminal law. Law & Society Review, 35, 701-726.

Darley, J.M., Carlsmith, K.M., & Robinson, P.H. (2000). Incapacitation and just deserts as motives for punishment. Law and Human Behavior, 24, 659-683.


Professional Experience
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