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Professor Lara Frumkin

Profile summary

  • Central Academic Staff
  • Head of Discipline and Professor of Psychology
  • Faculty of Arts & Social Sciences
  • School of Psychology & Counselling
  • Psychology
  • lara.frumkin

Professional biography

I joined The Open University in January 2018 as a Senior Lecturer in the School of Psychology & Counselling.  I am a chartered psychologist, senior fellow of the Higher Education Academy, associate fellow of the British Psychological Society and international affiliate of the American Psychological Association. Before coming to the OU, I worked in government, non-profit and academia.  After receiving my qualifications in the USA (BS, MA, PhD in psychology), I worked at the American Psychological Association informing policymakers and the public about psychological research and practice.  I then worked at the US Department of Justice linking psychology to relevant aspects of justice, national security and crime. I am a community and social psychologist investigating potential constraints and enablers affecting the engagement of marginalised, under-served populations within the criminal justice.

Research interests

My research is centred around applying psychological principles to criminal justice and security.  Within that there are a number of different strands to my work.  One programme of research looks at the influence of accent, race, and other seemingly irrelevant (extralegal) factors that impact case outcome and perceptions of witnesses. I also study ways to detect deception, assessing non-verbal behaviours as potential indicators of those who are engaging in nefarious activities.  A third aspect of my research is looking at community responses to terrorism and extremism, investigating how people catastrophise about and behave during threat situations.  Most recently, I have been studying and promoting openness in a socio-technological world, emphasising the importance of police and citizens interactions.

Teaching interests

I recently chaired production of Critically Exploring Psychology I (D810), a postgraduate module which is part of the MSc Psychology (Conversion) (F92), and then co-chaired its first presentation. I was also presentation chair of Investigating Forensic Psychology (DD802), a postgraduate module which is part of the MSc in Forensic Psychological Studies (F73). I have been involved in production and presentation on other modules, primarily postgraduate, and I have been a Head of Discipline in the School since 2022.

External collaborations

I am the Deputy Director of the Counter Terrorism Evidenced-Based Review Group (CTEBRG) which promotes effective collaboration between academics and police practitioners.  I have also been an academic consultant on a National Counter Terrorism Security Office (NaCTSO) project, assessing safety of the public in threat situations.

Publications

A review of cultural and ethnic bias in investigative decision-making: selected cases (2023)
Minhas, Rashid and Frumkin, Lara
Journal of Ethnicity in Criminal Justice, 21(3) (pp. 207-229)

Proven and not proven: A potential alternative to the current Scottish verdict system (2022-07-19)
Curley, Lee John; Munro, James; Turner, Jim; Frumkin, Lara A.; Jackson, Elaine and Lages, Martin
Behavioral Sciences & the Law, 40(3) (pp. 452-466)

Verdict spotting: Investigating the effects of juror bias, evidence anchors, and verdict system in jurors (2022)
Curley, Lee; Murray, Jennifer; MacLean, Rory; Munro, James; Lages, Martin; Frumkin, Lara; Laybourn, Phyllis and Brown, David
Psychiatry, Psychology and Law, 29(3) (pp. 323-344)

Digital detectives: websleuthing reduces eyewitness identification accuracy in police lineups (2021-04)
Elphick, Camilla; Philpot, Richard; Zhang, Min; Stuart, Avelie; Pike, Graham; Strathie, Ailsa; Havard, Catriona; Walkington, Zoe; Frumkin, Lara; Levine, Mark; Price, Blaine; Bandara, Arosha and Nuseibeh, Bashar
Frontiers in Psychology, 12, Article 640513

Building trust in digital policing: a scoping review of community policing apps (2021)
Elphick, Camilla; Philpot, Richard; Zhang, Min; Stuart, Avelie; Walkington, Zoe; Frumkin, Lara; Pike, Graham; Gardner, Kelly; Lacey, Mark; Levine, Mark; Price, Blaine; Bandara, Arosha and Nuseibeh, Bashar
Police Practice and Research, 22(5) (1469 -1491)

Informing Reform: The views of legal professionals on the unique aspects of Scottish Law (2021)
Curley, Lee; Munro, James; Frumkin, Lara and Turner, Jim
Medicine, Science and the Law, 61(4) (pp. 256-265)

Altruism and anxiety: Engagement with online community support initiatives (OCSIs) during Covid-19 lockdown in the UK and Ireland (2020-12-06)
Elphick, Camilla; Stuart, Avelie; Philpot, Richard; Walkington, Zoe; Frumkin, Lara; Zhang, Min; Levine, Mark; Price, Blaine; Pike, Graham; Nuseibeh, Bashar and Bandara, Arosha
Arxiv

The impact of different British accents on perceptions of eyewitness statements (2020-05-06)
Frumkin, Lara A. and Thompson, Amanda
Journal of Language and Discrimination, 4(1)

Not all eyewitnesses are equal: Accent status, race and age interact to influence evaluations of testimony (2020)
Frumkin, Lara A. and Stone, Anna
Journal of Ethnicity in Criminal Justice, 18(2) (pp. 123-145)

Human Factors in security: User-centred and socio-technical perspectives (2016)
Stedmon, Alex; Richards, Dale; Frumkin, Lara and Fussey, Peter
Security Journal, 29(1) (pp. 1-4)

Deception in context: coding nonverbal cues, situational variables and risk of detection (2013-10)
Zhang, Ke; Frumkin, Lara A.; Stedmon, Alex and Lawson, Glyn
Journal of Police and Criminal Psychology, 28(2) (pp. 150-161)

Young children's cognitive achievement: home learning environment, language and ethnic background (2013-05)
Frumkin, Lara
Journal of Early Childhood Research, 11(3) (pp. 222-235)

Cyberbullying experiences on-the-go: when social media can become distressing (2013)
Görzig, Anke and Frumkin, Lara
Cyberpsychology: Journal of Psychosocial Research on Cyberspace, 7(1)

Exploratory investigation of drivers of attainment in ethnic minority adult learners (2013)
Frumkin, Lara A. and Koutsoubou, Maria
Journal of Further and Higher Education, 37(2) (pp. 147-162)

The effects of self-awareness on body movement indicators of the intention to deceive (2013)
Lawson, Glyn; Stedmon, Alex W.; Zhang, Ke; Eubanks, Dawn L. and Frumkin, Lara A.
Applied Ergonomics, 44(5) (pp. 687-693)

Influences of accent and ethnic background on perceptions of eyewitness testimony (2007)
Frumkin, Lara
Psychology, Crime & Law, 13(3) (pp. 317-331)

Student perceptions of lecturer classroom communication style (2007)
Frumkin, L. A. and Murphy, A
European Journal of Social Sciences, 5(3) (pp. 45-60)

Postgraduate preferences: a study of factors contributing to programme satisfaction amongst masters students (2007)
Frumkin, Lara A.; Milankovic-Atkinson, Maya and Sadler, Chris
New Horizons in Education, 55(2) (pp. 37-54)

Does increasing communication through visual learning environments enhance student perceptions of lecturers? (2006)
Frumkin, Lara
International Education Journal, 7(5) (pp. 688-698)

Collaborative approaches to countering terrorism (2023-02-21)
Frumkin, Lara A. and Ford, Paul
In: Frumkin, Lara A.; Morrison, John F. and Silke, Andrew eds. A Research Agenda for Terrorism Studies. Elgar Research Agendas (pp. 211-224)
ISBN : 9781789909098 | Publisher : Edward Elgar Publishing Ltd | Published : Cheltenham, UK

Contemplating a research agenda for terrorism studies (2023-02-21)
Silke, Andrew; Frumkin, Lara A. and Morrison, John F.
In: Frumkin, Lara A.; Morrison, John F. and Silke, Andrew eds. A Research Agenda for Terrorism Studies. Elgar Research Agendas (pp. 1-20)
ISBN : 9781789909098 | Publisher : Edward Elgar Publishing Ltd | Published : Cheltenham, UK

Emerging Threats for the Human Element and Countermeasures in Current Cyber Security Landscape (2018)
Benson, Vladlena; McAlaney, John and Frumkin, Lara
In: McAlaney, John; Frumkin, Lara A. and Benson, Vladlena eds. Psychological and Behavioral Examinations in Cyber Security (pp. 266-271)
Publisher : IGI Global

Non-verbal cues to deception and their relationship to terrorism (2015)
Eubanks, D. L.; Zhang, K. and Frumkin, L.
In: Stedmon, A. and Lawson, G. eds. Hostile intent and counter terrorism: Human factors theory and application (pp. 75-92)
Publisher : Ashgate

A Research Agenda for Terrorism Studies (2023-02-21)
Silke, Andrew; Frumkin, Lara A. and Morrison, John F.
Frumkin, Lara; Morrison, John F. and Silke, Andrew eds.
ISBN : 9781789909098 | Publisher : Edward Elgar Publishers

Psychological and Behavioral Examinations in Cyber Security (2018)
McAlaney, J.; Frumkin, L. and Benson, V. eds.
ISBN : 9781522540533 | Publisher : IGI Global | Published : Hershey, USA

How Do People Use a Public Gratitude Platform in the Wild? (2024)
Zhang, Min; Arce-Plata, Carlos; Price, Blaine; Pike, Graham; Walkington, Zoe; Elphick, Camilla; Frumkin, Lara; Philpot, Richard; Keil, Tina; Levine, Mark; Stuart, Avelie; Nuseibeh, Bashar and Bandara, Arosha
In : Extended Abstracts of the CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI EA '24) (11-16 May 2024, Honolulu, Hawaii)

Towards a Socio-Technical Understanding of Police-Citizen Interactions (2023-08-25)
Zhang, Min; Bandara, Arosha K.; Philpot, Richard; Stuart, Avelie; Walkington, Zoe; Elphick, Camilla; Frumkin, Lara; Pike, Graham; Price, Blaine; Levine, Mark and Nuseibeh, Bashar
In : 19th IFIP TC13 International Conference INTERACT 2023 (28 Aug - 1 Sep 2023, York, UK) (pp. 324-345)

Attitudes towards Online Community Support Initiatives during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Survey in the UK (2022-05-10)
Zhang, Min; Elphick, Camilla; Philpot, Richard; Walkington, Zoe; Frumkin, Lara; Price, Blaine; Pike, Graham; Levine, Mark; Nuseibeh, Bashar and Bandara, Arosha
In : CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems Extended Abstracts (1-7 May 2022)

Towards Citizen Forensics: Improving Citizen-Police Collaboration (2020)
Bandara, Arosha; Zhang, Min; Price, Blaine; Pike, Graham; Elphick, Camilla; Walkington, Zoe; Frumkin, Lara; Philpot, Richard; Levine, Mark; Stuart, Avelie and Nuseibeh, Bashar
In : Workshop on Crime and/or Punishment: Joining the Dots between Crime, Legality and HCI, Extended Abstracts of ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (25-30 Apr 2020, Honolulu, HI, USA)

Designing Technologies for Community Policing (2020)
Zhang, Min; Bandara, Arosha; Price, Blaine; Pike, Graham; Walkington, Zoe; Elphick, Camilla; Frumkin, Lara; Philpot, Richard; Levine, Mark; Stuart, Avelie and Nuseibeh, Bashar
In : Extended Abstracts of ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (Late Breaking Work) (25-30 Apr 2020, Honolulu, HI, USA) (pp. 1-9)

Telling the difference between deceiving and truth telling: An experiment in a public space (2013)
Ke Zhang, ; Eubanks, Dawn L.; Frumkin, Lara A.; Saikayasit, Rose; Stedmon, Alex W. and Lawson, Glyn
In : 10th IEEE International Conference and Workshops on Automatic Face and Gesture Recognition (FG) (22-26 Apr 2013, Shanghai, China) (pp. 1-8)

Deception and self-awareness (2011-07)
Lawson, Glyn; Stedmon, Alex; Zhang, Chloe; Eubanks, Dawn and Frumkin, Lara
In : 9th International Conference, EPCE 2011 (9-14 Jul 2011, Orlando, FL, USA,) (pp. 414-423)

Designing Multimedia for Differences: e-Lecturer, e-Tutor, and e-Student Perspectives (2005-07-04)
Benson, Vladlena; Frumkin, Lara and Murphy, Alan
In : Third International Conference on Information Technology and Applications (ICITA'05) (4-7 Jul 2005) (pp. 159-164)

Investigating computer-supported cooperative learning: Applications for flexible learning environments (2005)
Dafoulas, George; Frumkin, Lara; Mimirinis, Mike and Murphy, Alan
In : The 3rd ACS/IEEE International Conference onComputer Systems and Applications (2005, Cairo) (pp. 847-852)

East meets West: A web-based training needs analysis of e-learning professionals across cultures (2005)
Frumkin, Lara; Mimirinis, Mike and Murphy, Alan
In : Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education (AACE) (27 Jun 2005, Montreal, Canada) (pp. 3104-3110)

Support mechanisms for web-enhanced learning in diverse cultural contexts (2005)
Frumkin, L.A.; Mimirinis, M.; Murphy, A.; Dimitrova, M.T. and Dafoulas, G.
In : Proceedings of the 4th IASTED International Conference on Web-based Education, WBE (21-23 Feb 2005, Grindelwald, Switzerland) (pp. 361-366)

Student Support: Internet Training from the Perspective of the E-Learning Professional (2004-11)
Frumkin, Lara; Mimirinis, Mike and Murphy, Alan
In : Communications, Internet, and Information Technology (22-24 Nov 2004, St Thomas, Virgin Islands)

From e-learning to b-learning: How students use e-learning material in a blended learning environment (2004)
Frumkin, Lara; Mimirinis, Mike; Dimitrova, Maia and Murphy, Alan
In : E-Learn: World Conference on E-Learning in Corporate, Government, Healthcare, and Higher Education (2004) (pp. 1870-1875)

Factors influencing learning behaviour of diverse distance students (2004)
Frumkin, Lara, A; Dimitrova, Maia; Mimirinis, Mike and Murphy, Alan
In : Blue skies and pragmatism: learning technologies for the next decade. Research proceedings of the 11th Association for Learning Technology Conference (ALT-C) (14-16 Sep 2004, University of Exeter)

Utilising web log files for the evaluation of learning experiences of local and distance students in computing science (2004)
Mimirinis, Mike; Frumkin, Lara and Murphy, Alan
In : ECEL2004: 3rd European Conference on E-Learning (25-26 Nov 2004, Université Paris-Dauphine, Paris, France) (pp. 231-237)

Projection of learning objects in cultural awareness (2004)
Frumkin, Lara; Mimirinis, Mike and Murphy, Alan
In : Society for Research in Higher Conference (14-16 Dec 2004, Bristol, UK)

Digital technologies, power and control: A review of how organisations can empower individuals and communities to develop trust, uphold their privacy and curate their identity in a secure digital environment. (2022)
Evans, Ben; Frumkin, Lara; Coopamootoo, Kovila; Jesus, Vitor and Little, Sabine
University of Manchester

Literacy, numeracy and disadvantage among older adults in England: final report for Nuffield Foundation (2011-02)
Jenkins, Andrew; Ackerman, Rodie; Frumkin, Lara; Salter, Emma and Vorhaus, John
National Research and Development Centre for adult literacy and numeracy, London.

Drivers and Challenges in Raising the Achievement of Pupils from Bangladeshi, Somali and Turkish Backgrounds (2010-03)
Frumkin, Lara; Strand, Steve; de Coulon, Augustin; Meschi, Elena; Vorhaus, John; Ivins, Claire; Small, Lauren; Sood, Amrita; Gervais, Marie-Claude and Rehman, Hamid
DSCF, London.

Learning literacy together: the impact and effectiveness of family literacy on parents, children, families and schools (2009-10)
Swain, Jon; Welby, Sian; Brooks, Greg; Bosley, Sara; Frumkin, Lara; Fairfax-Cholmeley, Karen; Perez, Alegria and Cara, Olga
Learning and Skills Improvement Service

Adult numeracy: a review of research (2009)
Carpentieri, J.D.; Lister, Jenny and Frumkin, Lara
National Research and Development Centre for Adult Literacy and Numeracy, London.

Your money matters evaluation: money management for older people (2009)
Brazier, Laura; Frumkin, Lara; Litster, Jenny and Ward, Anne
Help the Aged

Improving further education provision for learners from minority ethnic groups: a review of the evidence (2008)
Quality Improvement Agency, and Frumkin, Lara
Quality Improvement Agency