Research Portfolio
Research
I’ve been a UX researcher for five years and a researcher in psychology for fourteen. My work spans the entire product development life cycle—from early exploration to post-launch evaluation—through both exploratory and evaluative, qualitative and quantitative studies. Learn more about my UX research process here. Below is a small sample of my work.
Rethinking Forced Interaction through Usability Testing and A/B Testing
My research uncovered that assumptions in Kardder’s core product strategy were wrong, leading to a redesign of our interaction model.
Enhancing Browse Discoverability With Log Data and Usability Testing
My research led to the creation of a new home page feature that helped Kardder increase the number of sessions that led to profile visits by 46%—from 30% to 44%.
Designing Profiles That Connect: A Mixed-Methods Study Using Surveys and MaxDiff
My research helped Kardder identify the most important features to include in profiles, supporting user communication, understanding, and connection.
Personas with Purpose: Helping Kardder Understand and Design for Student Needs
My research led me to create two personas that help Kardder’s design team keep undergraduate students’ goals, lifestyles, pain points, and ideals in mind.
Object Perception: The Contour 'Filling In' Process in Vision
The information our eyes receive is often fragmented—objects are frequently partially occluded, yet we effortlessly fill in the missing pieces to perceive whole objects. How does this process of 'filling in' work? My research into contour interpolation reveals a process that detects pairs of terminating edges with specific geometric relationships, filling in smooth curves to connect them. This process occurs in stages: initial connections are made in an intermediate (not final) representation, with additional scene cues considered afterward to determine whether the filled-in connections should remain or be discarded from the final perception.