Professor of Psychological Science
Ph.D. Indiana University
(949) 824-7206
rwnovaco@uci.edu
4343 Social and Behavioral Sciences Gateway
Department:
Psychological Science
Specializations:
anger, violence, stress, trauma, and interventions
My current research remains dedicated to the study of anger and violent behavior, especially with regard to their therapeutic regulation. Present projects continue to focus on the assessment and treatment of seriously disordered persons having histories of violence. This research is being conducted at both the clinical and epidemiological level, involving studies at forensic facilities. The general objective is to further refine anger assessment procedures, to elaborate cognitive-behavioral intervention for anger dysregulation, and to better understand their context-based implementation. Attention is being given to the interrelationship of anger with clinical disorders, such as psychosis, PTSD, and intellectual disabilities, as well as physical health and well-being. The connection between anger and trauma is examined in research on war veterans (Vietnam, Iraq, and Afghanistan) and on people in long-term care institutions who have traumatic life histories.
Other aspects of my research on anger, trauma, and violence are projects on domestic violence. My domestic violence research has primarily concerned women and children served by emergency shelters, transitional living programs, and a family justice center, giving attention to the effects of traumatic exposure to violence and of community-based services on women’s psycho-social adjustment and child behavior problems. My ongoing work with forensic hospital patients has included research on how family violence exposure (“volatile parents”) is related to the patients’ anger and assaultiveness.
Environmental determinants of human stress remain a core interest, such as transportation conditions (i.e., traffic congestion and high impedance commuting) and war-related stressors, examined for impacts on health and well being. My other environmental stress research was on aggregate-level economic change, based on a model of the net effect of provocation and inhibition linked to economic downturns on various forms of psychogenic violent behavior.