User Experience Digital Product

Kelly Dickerson, PhD

Psychology User Experience Digital Strategy

Forest Hills New York United States

607-***-**** ****************@*****.***

About me

Across my 12 years of post-graduate experience, I have learned that well scoped, communicated, and applied research is at the heart of effective digital strategies. My diverse range of experiences makes me uniquely suited to apply my skills to develop innovative solutions to marketing and technology problems. I thrive in fast paced agile environments, but I know first hand what it takes to establish programs, processes, and products rooted in theory translated into action.

Skills and Tools

● Qualitative Research: Diary studies, interviews, focus groups, usability studies, think aloud method, journey maps, and personas

● Quantitative/Mixed Research: Surveys (e.g., SUS, NPS, NASA-TLX), behavioral usability, prototype testing, laboratory-based experimental research, and A/B testing.

● Statistics: ANOVAs, regression and correlation, centrality and descriptives, cluster analysis.

● Physiological: EEG, eye tracking, heart rate variability, signal processing, audiological assessment.

● Relevant Software: MS Office, G Suite, Mural, Adobe Suite, SPSS, MatLab, LucidChart

● Government: Contracting law and policy, level 2 contracting officer’s representative

(COR), functional requirements analysis, engineering services procurement, research procurement, L Clearance.

Education

Ph.D. Cognitive Psychology M.S. Psychology B.S. Psychology Experience

Binghamton University

Research Associate Professor, 6/2012 - Current

● Led small scale surveys and human experiments examining how adults and children process digital information and apply it in the real world.

● Led the development of research that leveraged advanced statistical analysis techniques, including MDS, cluster analysis, time series analysis, and LMM to predict how previous experiences influence performance future similar tasks.

● Led junior staff and students in the day to day execution and management of multiple NSF and NIH funded research projects.

● Authored or co-authored many peer reviewed publications and conference proceedings (full text available upon request).

● Led the development of an NSF grant examining the role of digital media in changes in visual perception and emotional state.

U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission

Branch Chief (temporary promotion), Probabilistic Risk Assessment Branch, 11/2023-03/2024

● Supervised team of nine risk analysts developing user-centered guidance and tools.

● Created AI-driven solutions to enhance the analysis of user feedback and optimize research processes.

● Led working group to formulate a strategy for making research more accessible to stakeholders and the general public.

● Collaborated with program offices to define research goals and ensure alignment with user needs.

● Managed all contracting activities for the branch ($1.5 mil/FY) to support research-related initiatives.

● Engaged regularly with senior leadership to highlight research outcomes and demonstrate their value to program offices.

U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission

Senior Research Psychology, Principal Investigator 7/2021 - Present

● Led a usability study for a new user interface designed to control a hydrogen extraction process.

● Developed custom Python scripts for efficient data extraction from complex user interaction simulations.

● Led data integration and analysis for multiple different human performance metrics.

● Effectively communicated complex user requirements to cross-functional teams in simulation engineering and physics modeling, ensuring successful development of innovative models.

● Managed a multi-site, multidisciplinary user experience research program focused on performance and design challenges for next-generation nuclear power plant control rooms.

● Secured and managed multiple contracts supporting research facilities and software tools ($450k/FY).

● Fostered partnerships with public and private sectors, including a collaboration with NASA to enhance NRC’s access to advanced research and engineering services.

Flexion Inc.

Digital Strategist @ General Services Administration, Technology Transformation Services) 6/2020 - 5/2021

● Led all phases of numerous rapid-turnaround qualitative and quantitative user research projects (2-8 weeks).

● Facilitated agile cross-functional teams through complex software engineering and service design initiatives.

● Managed project teams and budgets to ensure optimal staffing and timely delivery of research outcomes.

● Acted as the lead advisor in creating a streamlined program and process to protect research participant privacy and establish informed consent documentation.

● Developed the conceptual and research framework for enhancing employee experience at Flexion, involving direct engagement with company V.P.s and regular updates on climate survey results.

Intellipro Group

UX Researcher contractor @ Google 11/2019 - 5/2020

● Developed and implemented a rapid and iterative user research program that led to measurable increases in project support and improved decision-making for partners while reducing costs.

● Managed project and program budgets and staffing to ensure adequate support within tight schedules, regularly briefing senior leadership on program status, deliverables, budgets, and outcomes.

● Contributed to a long-term diary study with Gen Z participants to assess the adoption of Google ad products among social media influencers.

● Conducted several quick-turnaround qualitative usability studies, focusing on interviews across various product areas within the Google Ads ecosystem.

● Supported quick-turnaround studies for multiple product areas in the Google publisher ecosystem, specifically targeting advertising for web and mobile content publishers.

● Assisted in the development, analysis, and reporting of multiple large-scale surveys for Google Ad Manager customers.

US Army Data and Analysis Center

Principal Psychologist 5/2018 - 11/2019

● Led and collaborated with cross-functional teams in all phases of user experience research and laboratory experiments.

● Supervised junior researchers and students throughout the development and execution of research initiatives.

● Formulated actionable recommendations for product improvements based on insights derived from technical research findings.

● Effectively communicated technical results to senior leadership, military officials, and diverse non-technical audiences.

● Utilized a variety of research methodologies, including user interviews, requirements gathering, physical ergonomics assessments, usability testing, and standardized surveys (with participant sizes ranging from 10 to 100), as well as eye tracking and behavioral performance metrics.

● Applied descriptive and inferential statistical techniques, including modeling and predictive methods such as ICA, PCA, MDS, and Bayesian statistics. US Army Research Laboratory

Principal Psychologist 2/2015 - 5/2018

● Led and co-led cross-functional teams through all phases of user experience research and laboratory experiments.

● Directed the publication of various reports, including peer-reviewed articles, conference proceedings, and technical documentation.

● Co-mentored two graduate students in their thesis research projects.

● Collaborated on the development of STEM outreach programs targeting local middle and high school students.

● Employed a range of research techniques, including behavioral performance measures, eye tracking, and EEG. Specialized in audiological screenings and acoustic signal processing.

● Utilized descriptive and inferential statistical methods, including advanced modeling and predictive techniques such as ICA, PCA, MDS, and Bayesian statistics.

US Army Research Laboratory

Postdoctoral Research Psychologist 7/2013 - 2/2015

● Led or co-led multiple laboratory research studies aimed at characterization of human performance using hearing and head protection devices.

● Specific research techniques include: behavioral (performance-based) measures, eye tracking, and EEG. Additional specialized research techniques include audiological screenings, audio engineering (spatial audio,signal processing, sound editing and mixing, auditory icon creation), acoustic and psychoacoustic analysis, and bone conduction audio.

● This research involved descriptive and inferential statistical techniques, including modeling and predictive techniques (ICA, PCA, MDS, and Bayesian statistics). Recent Publications

Dickerson, K., Hildebrandt, M., Gerhardstein, P., & Hughes Green, N. (2024). Affinity for technology and its influence in subjective and objective assessments of system usability. Proceedings of the Applied Human Factors and Ergonomics Society. *Best paper award

Dickerson, K., Grasso, J., Watkins, H., & Hughes, N. (In Press, March 2023). Multidimensional display complexity assessment: Tools for control room human factors evaluations. Human Factors and Simulation, 67.

Lin, J., Matthews, G., Schreck, J., Dickerson, K., & Green, N. H. (2023). Evolution of Workload Demands of the Control Room With Plant Technology. Human Factors and Simulation, 57. *Best paper award.

Hughes, N., D’Agostino, A., Dickerson, K., Matthews, G., Reinerman-Jones, L., Barber, D., Mercado, J., Harris, J., & Lin, J. (2023). Human Performance Test Facility Volume 1

– Systematic human performance data collection using nuclear power plant simulator: A methodology. (RIL 2022-11). U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Hughes, N., Reinerman-Jones, L., Lin, J., Matthews, G., Barber, D., & Dickerson, K.

(2023). Human Performance Test Facility Volume 2 – Comparing operator workload and performance between digitized and analog simulated environments. (RIL 2022-11). U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

Hughes, N., Lin, J., Matthews, G., Barber, D., & Dickerson, K. (2023). Human Performance Test Facility Volume 3 – Supplemental exploratory analyses of sensitivity of workload measures. (RIL 2022-11). U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Lin, J., Matthews, G., Hughes, N., & Dickerson, K. (2022). Novices as models of expert operators: Evidence from the NRC human performance test facility. Human Factors and Simulation, 30, 1-10.

Roth, E., O’Hara, J., Dickerson, K., & Hughes, N. (2022). Cognitive task analysis technical basis and guidance development. RIL 2020-07. U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

Kelley, T., & Dickerson, K. (2020). A review of artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms for sound classification: Implications for human-robot interaction (HRI). (No. ARL-TR-8898). US Army Combat Capabilities Development Command Aberdeen Proving Ground United States.

Davis, B. M., Dickerson, K., & Gillmore, S. C. (2019, July). User Centered Design Strategies for Improving Visualization of Sensor Data in Rotorcraft Cockpit Displays for Degraded Visual Environment Operations. In International Conference on Applied Human Factors and Ergonomics (pp. 131-141). Springer, Cham. Full publication list available upon request.

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