Washington State Institute for Criminal Justice

The Washington State Institute For Criminal Justice (WSICJ) provides research assistance and expertise to improve the policies and practices of the state and national criminal justice system. With a focus on applied, problem solving research, the Institute aims to improve criminal justice efficiency and effectiveness through the identification, assessment, and evaluation of promising and evidence-based interventions and practices. The scope of the Institute is comprised of two divisions – Policing & Security and Corrections & Sentencing – which encompasses the wide array of research knowledge and expertise among its directors, faculty, staff and affiliated members and partners.

Complex Social Interactions Lab

The Complex Social Interactions Lab is committed to developing new behavioral science methodologies and technologies that can be utilized in real world applications to investigate police officer decision-making and interpersonal interaction by examining unredacted footage recorded by officer body worn cameras (BCW).

Division of Governmental Studies & Services

The Division of Governmental Studies and Services (DGSS) is a university outreach unit jointly supported by the College of Arts and Sciences and WSU Extension. It serves the applied social science research needs of governmental agencies in Washington and the Pacific Northwest region. DGSS also provides support for basic research and grant-related work for faculty and graduate students of the Department of Political Science and Department of Criminal Justice and Criminology.

Thomas S. Foley Institute for Public Policy & Public Service

The Foley Institute was established at WSU in 1995 to honor the service of Thomas S. Foley, former Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives. Through a variety of programs, scholarships, and fellowships, the institute fosters cross-disciplinary research, education, and student participation in public policy and public service. The institute has a 3-fold mission:

1. To enhance public affairs programming and education on campus (through events such as public policy forums, the coffee and politics series, public affairs lecture series, etc., that are free and open to the public).
2. To catalyze public policy research and Congressional studies (through sponsorship of research conferences and interdisciplinary research groups and partnerships such as the WSU–ICU Partnership, ENSCOG, the Institute for the Study of Intercommunal Conflict, etc.).
3. To foster student involvement in public policy and public service (through the institute’s internship and fellowship programs in Congress, the state legislature, and various federal, state, and local agencies).