Current Ph.D. Students

Fall 2023 Cohort

Ela Buczek

Hometown: Tobyhanna, PA

Education: Marywood University, BS (2023)

Research Interests: social support, work engagement, job demands-resource model, leadership

Mentor: Jennifer Bragger

Edileide Novais Cavalcanti

Hometown: Kearny, NJ

Education: Montclair State University, BA (2022)

Research Interests: employee well-being and motivation, workplace psychological constructs, leadership, and psychometric assessment

Mentor: Valerie Sessa

Emily Pinsk

Hometown: Devon, PA

Education: Loyola University, BBA (2023)

Research Interests: employee well-being, motivation, and the role of emotions at work

Mentor: Manuel Gonzalez

Allama Ikbal Sijan

Hometown: Jibannagar, Bangladesh

Education: Earlham College, BA (2022)

Research Interests: leadership theories and development, team processes, DEI, technology use (NLP and ML) to improve organizational research practices, psychometrics, and data science

Mentor: Michael Bixter

Sarvenaz Taridashti

Hometown: Bandar-E Gaz, Iran

Education: Kharazmi University, BA (2018); Research and Science Branch of Islamic Azad University, MA (2023)

Research Interests: Stereotype threat and the experience of women and minorities in STEM; identify threat; stigma; social dominance; and individual and institutional replication of harmful or exclusionary norms

Mentor: Rick Laguerre

Fall 2022 Cohort

Christina Christodoulou

Hometown: Branchburg, NJ

Education: Drew University, BA (May 2020); The New School for Social Research, MA (December 2021)

Research Interests: role of lifestyle, including mental and physical health habits, in work productivity, satisfaction and longevity; individual cognitions and intra-group functions driving lifestyle; biases within individual and group level decision making

Mentor: Rick Laguerre

Lauren Offermann

Hometown: Suffern, NY

Education: Seton Hall University, BS (2012); Iona University, MBA (2018)

Research Interests: leadership, diversity, and OHP as it relates to mental health

Mentor: Valerie Sessa, Jennifer Bragger, and Cheryl Gray


Isabel Skovera

Hometown: Reading, PA

Education: Albright College, BA (2021)

Research Interests: group dynamics, shared leadership, diversity, Social Identity Theory, social support, quantitative psychology and statistics, and status perception

Mentor: Valerie Sessa and Cheryl Gray


Sara Stavely

Hometown: North Wales, PA

Education: West Chester University of Pennsylvania, BA (2022)

Research Interests: leader development and leadership styles; group dynamics and impact of group norms and social awareness at work; motivation and self determination theory in personal success; sexual harassment; diversity in the workplace.

Mentor: Rick Laguerre


Zachary Wanamaker

Hometown: Rockaway, NJ

Education: Fairleigh Dickinson University, BS (2014); Montclair State University MA (2018)

Research Interests: training, job performance, and employee well-being

Mentor: Kevin Askew

Fall 2021 Cohort

Diego Figueiras

Hometown: Springfield, NJ

Education: Rutgers University, BS (2018)

Research Interests: comparisons of different psychometric methodologies, such as IRT and CTT; the use of AI and big data techniques for developing models that accurately predict job satisfaction, job performance, turnover, and other industrial psychology variables of interest.

Mentor: Michael Bixter

Mike DeFabiis

Hometown: Sussex, NJ

Education: Ramapo College of New Jersey, BA (2018)

Research Interests: data analytics, people analytics, selection and assessment, learning and development, virtual reality training, psychometrics, and performance management

Mentor: Kevin Askew


Lauren Hunt

Hometown: Denver, CO

Education: Metropolitan State University of Denver, BA (2019)

Research Interests: personality and individual differences as they relate to interpersonal/team dynamics and performance; people analytics; research methods; psychometrics

Mentor: Jennifer Bragger


Wassim Elhouar

Hometown: Peoria, Il

Education: Bradley University, BA (2011), University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, EdM (2020)

Research Interests: toxic and negative behaviors in the workplace; neurodiversity; managing talent; multiculturalism and social justice; the future of work and society

Mentor: Cheryl Gray


Jacob Breaux

Hometown: Baton Rouge, LA

Education: Louisiana State University, BS & BA (2021)

Research Interests: heuristics and biases in team environments; team composition and personality; leadership and team performance; associate retention in big law firms

Mentor: Michael Bixter


Loren Shelley

Hometown: Hopkinsville, KY

Education: University of Kentucky, BA (2017)

Research Interests: employee well-being, psychological and workplace safety, and diversity and inclusion with a focus on disability

Mentor: Valerie Sessa

Fall 2020 Cohort

Dana Sobel

Hometown: Burlington, NJ

Education: Montclair State University. MA (2020); Georgian Court University, BA (2018)

Research Interests: creating, validating, and implementing measures of servant leadership; leadership development and measurement; diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in the workplace

Mentors: Jennifer Bragger

Morgan Russell

Hometown: Rocky River, OH

Education: Denison University, BA (2019)

Research Interests: Psychological consequences of working from home and the coronavirus pandemic; The relationship between personality and organizational commitment

Mentor: Kevin Askew