U.S. Senate
John has two masters' degrees in psychology, not finishing a Ph.D. or pursuing academia due to a car accident.
He is married with two teens, and enjoys table tennis, beach walking and swims. He has a pet gecko named 'Nike.'
John taught at San Bernardino Valley College and University of Phoenix, Honolulu, psychology then nutrition.
He has taken classes in public health at University of Hawaii, Manoa, graduated masters' degree in Oregon and California.
As an undergrad in Seattle he met his wife at 17, precluding her attending UH Manoa to join up family already in Hawaii.
John is cousin to Raul Roco, past Philippine Senator, and Bembol Roco, principal actor of a Cannes premier film.
To Each and Everyone of Hawaii,
Just two miles from the San Bernardino tragedy, I taught at San Bernardino Valley College, and also attended a Ph.D. clinical psychology program at Loma Linda University.​
I thought of "mishap" then, as an A.B.D.I.P (all but dissertation, internship and practicum) instead of Ph.D. due to a disabling car accident. But my research proposal on the "Psychological Impact of Suicide Bombing," foreshadowed events just two miles away, not in far off Israel where it was sent, but not accepted.
My foci was psychology's must to be forefront in the war on terrorism. My mandatory requirement choice to present on "the Public Health of Terrorism," drew a strong response from a Palestinian health student.
Immediately following my presentation, she raised her hand, and referred to my describing the first Muslim female suicide bomber.
The only questioner, she blurted out in an exaggerated tone, "As you say women are blowing themselves up (motioning with arm) well since bombs that kill Palestinian civilians, including women and children, are inscribed, marked as being made in the U.S.A., and I believe that is true, and all U. S. citizens pay for those bombs through taxes, then wouldn't you agree that it is reasonable to say, 'all U.S. citizens are terrorists?" There was no flinching, but instead an angry shake as she drove her point home; this was her belief.
The professor halted discussion.
Assumptions of "homogeneity," or "people are all the same" flew out the door for myself and all Americans in the room.
We cannot afford undocumentated circumvention; every tally entering U.S.A. must be vetted for criminality and terrorism in rigorous analyses.
There are psychological tools that can be developed to make science work to weed out people that want to come into our country and do destruction. I know. My masters project developed and validated an instrument based on the U.S. Army's seminal Racial Attitudes and Perceptions Survey, R.A.P.S. study. I tracked down the study, received permission for its use, and based my statistical analyses on it, though I added factor analysis (determining underlying elements of an explicitly defined construct, which could be "Criminal" or "Terrorist" tendencies).
As your U.S. congressman from Hawaii, I will emphasize applying psychological science to the vetting and fight the national adherence to undocumented circumvention.
There is more.
I was a foster famiy agency social worker four years. I interviewed foster families and investigated for allegations of abuse. There was a need for psychological instruments to be developed and mandated for use for potential foster parents who may have no criminal record, but abused "in the closet." The majority of adult male perpetrators of sexual abuse of boys, were never found or reported for database inclusion.
I intend to make my psychological background work for this country and Hawaii's safety inside and out.
Thank you for your consideration,
John P. Roco, M.A., M.A.
a Republican candidate for
Congress, U.S. Senate Hawaii
January 14, 2016 1:58pm Hawaii
MEET JOHN
Open Letter from Past Professor of Psychology and Mental Health Counselor in Congress run
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"The Impact of Decisions we make today may not be felt immediately, but hopefully ensure safety for generations to come."
~John Roco
