Dr. Socia is a Professor in the School of Criminology and Justice Studies and a Fellow for the Center for Public Opinion at the University of Massachusetts, Lowell. His research has been published in journals such as Criminology & Public Policy, Crime & Delinquency, Sex Abuse, and Justice Quarterly. He has experience consulting on court cases involving the housing impacts of sex offender residency restrictions. His research interests include the sex offender registry and associated public policies, reentry and recidivism, public opinion and policy-making, and spatial analyses. He received his Ph.D. in Criminal Justice from the School of Criminal Justice at the University at Albany, State University of New York, in 2011.