Dr. Michael D. Mumford is the George Lynn Cross Distinguished Research Professor of Psychology at the University of Oklahoma where he directs the Center for Applied Social Research. He received his doctoral degree from the University of Georgia in 1983 in the fields of Industrial and Organizational Psychology and Psychometrics. Dr. Mumford is a fellow of the American Psychological Association (Divisions 3, 5, 10, 14), the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology, and the American Psychological Society. He has written more than 350 peer-reviewed articles on leadership, creativity, planning, and ethics. Dr. Mumford has served as senior editor of the Leadership Quarterly and Journal of Creative Behavior, the International Journal of Creativity and Problem Solving, and IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management among other journals. Dr. Mumford has served as Principal Investigator on grants totaling more than 30 million from the National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Health, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the Department of Defense, the Department of State, and the Department of Labor. He is a recipient of the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology’s M. Scott Myers Award for Applied Research in the Workplace. Dr. Mumford has recently edited and published a book on organizational planning and has extensive experience developing and validating assessment measures.
MRG Lab
Graduate Students
Cory Higgs
Year: 5th
Undergrad institution: University of California, Los Angeles
Current research: My general research interests lie in leadership, ethics, and creativity. Currently, I'm the coordinator for the Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) ethics training program that we run here at OU, which affords me the privilege of investigating some very interesting ethics-related issues. Some of the more recent projects I've been involved with include my thesis on leadership styles and how the use of fantasy may influence follower creative performance, ethics research investigating the cognitive processes behind whistleblowing, and the emotions experienced during ethical dilemmas and how they may influence decision-making.
Hobbies, interests, and/or fun facts: I enjoy going to the movies (especially for scary flicks), finding local hidden gem spots to eat, taking care of my aquariums, and playing the occasional video game when I have time (role-playing games are my go-to).
Michelle Todd
Year: 5th
Undergrad institution: University of Georgia
Current research: My research interests are creativity, problem-solving, and decision-making in the workplace. Currently I am exploring these topics through my Master's thesis, which examines the impact of forecasting training and decision biases on creative problem-solving. I am also studying collective leadership and problem-solving through a grant funded by the Army.
Hobbies, interests, and/or fun facts: My hobbies include anything involved with the water. I love kayaking, swimming, and sailing. Me at my happiest is hanging out by the river, playing my ukulele, and eating some stuffed crust pizza.
Robert Martin
Year: 4th
Undergrad institutuion: University of Georgia
Current research: My research interests include creativity, leadership, and planning.
Hobbies, interests, and/or fun facts: Some of my interests include swimming, cooking, board games, and video games.
Samantha Elliott
Year: 4th
Undergrad institution: Fort Hays State University
Current research: My dissertation is exploring how attentional distractions (i.e., email interruptions) impacts creative problem-solving.
Hobbies, interests, and/or fun facts: I enjoy crocheting, cooking, antiquing, and exploring the outdoors. I also have a pretty awesome hippopotamus collection.
Yash Gujar
Year: 3rd
Undergrad institution: Stony Brook University
Current research: My general research interests revolve around leadership, selection, feedback and creativity. My master’s thesis involves socioeconomic status and how it could interact with a leader’s behaviors to affect who is nominated as the leader in a group setting, and how that group then performs on a task.
Hobbies, interests, and/or fun facts: Being from New York, one of my favorite things to do is visit museums—NYC is filled with some amazing ones. I enjoy playing card games, riding my bike and trying to find a decent deli here in OK. I also enjoy traveling, next on my list is Greece, and I hope I can go soon!
Colleen Standish
Year: 3rd
Undergrad institution: Oregon State University
Current research: My research interests include leadership, creativity, wisdom, and psychometrics. For my thesis I am developing a new measure for wisdom. I am also examining wisdom as a predictor of leader performance.
Hobbies, interests, and/or fun facts: I am an avid outdoor enthusiast who was born and raised in Oregon. I love hiking, kayaking, and biking. In addition to outdoor activities, I am a major bookworm who loves nothing more than to relax with a good novel and my two cats.
Mark Fichtel
Year: 2nd
Undergrad institution: The University of Oklahoma
Current research: My research interests include leadership, ethics, and goal analysis. My thesis will focus on how leaders analyze goals and refine them.
Hobbies, interests, and/or fun facts: I am basically your all-around geek. My hobbies include Dungeons and Dragons, Magic: The Gathering, and Star Wars. I also enjoy traveling and have been to over 35 different countries.
Samantha England
Year: 2nd
Undergrad institution: Penn State University
Current research: I am currently not working on any research as a first year student. However, my broad research interests are creativity and leadership.
Hobbies, interests, and/or fun facts: I enjoy spending time with my friends and family, reading crime and thriller novels, and listening to podcasts.
Tanner Newbold
Year: 2nd
Undergrad institution: Westminster College
Current research: My research interests center broadly around leadership and how it relates to motivation, creativity, and integrity. Specifically, I’m fascinated with understanding how styles of leadership influence autonomous motivation, communication, creative problem solving, and ethical decision making.
Hobbies, interests, and/or fun facts: I love all things outdoors. I love hiking, camping, photography, and discovering beautiful places I want to visit. I also love sports (Jazz > Thunder), eating out, ice cream, reading, watching my favorite shows, and wrestling with my 2 year old son.
OU I/O Program Alumni
Check out what current and former students are up to!
I-Oklahoman 2019 Newsletter (pdf)
