Sarah Kruger, PhD

Research Psychologist, Behavioral Scientist, People Scientist || JDM, law, policy, leadership, applied science, evaluation || Social Psych PhD

Kansas City Metropolitan Area

About

Experienced researcher (10+ years) fascinated by applied psychology, research methods, behavioral economics, judgment & decision-making, leadership and leader development, law and policy, and evaluation. Advocate for interdisciplinary mixed methods, including experiments, surveys/polls, behavioral paradigms, focus groups, interviews, and program evaluation. Lover of applied research that delivers actionable insights, especially working to better communities and teams I'm in. Proficient data analyst in R with knowledge in descriptive and inferential statistics. Social Psychology PhD interested in survey building, learning new systems and methods, and answering complex research questions. ◾DELIVERABLES◾ • $100k+ in research grant and fellowship funding • 8 Peer-reviewed publications in academic journals • 15+ Technical reports and online articles • 30+ Conference presentations

Experience

  • Research Psychologist at U.S. Army Research Institute for the Behavioral and Social Sciences
    Jun 2024 - Present · 2 yrs 1 mo

  • Consortium of Universities of the Washington Metropolitan Area (2 yrs)
    • Postdoctoral Research Fellow
      Jun 2023 - May 2024 · 1 yr

      Lead a postdoctoral project taking a lifespan development approach to leader competency growth and change in the U.S. Army.

    • Doctoral Research Fellow
      Jun 2022 - May 2023 · 1 yr

      Studying leader development at the Army Research Institute for the Behavioral and Social Sciences, through the Consortium Research Fellows Program.

  • University of Nevada, Reno (6 yrs 1 mo)
    • Research Fellow
      2022 - 2023 · 1 yr

      Received a Russell J. and Dorothy S. Bilinski Fellowship to fund dissertation research on social psychology and plea bargaining through the University of Nevada, Reno's College of Liberal Arts.

    • Lab Manager
      2017 - 2022 · 5 yrs

      Co-Manager of the Psychology & Law research lab. Recruited, trained, and mentored 50+ undergraduate research assistants, managed a weekly schedule, and designed experiments, surveys, and field studies.

    • Research Pool Manager
      2020 - 2021 · 1 yr

      Managed the university SONA system by coordinating with instructors, researchers, and students to facilitate research experiences for 300+ students and data collection for 50+ researchers per semester.

  • Researcher at Grant Sawyer Center for Justice Studies
    2019 - 2022 · 3 yrs

    Worked on quant and qual research projects pertaining to justice topics. Used diverse research methods and skills in this position, including survey development/design, content analysis, program evaluation, primary data collection, budgeting, and report writing. Worked on projects with local and state non-profits, government entities, and international collaborations. As an example of my work, linked below is a publicly available report I co-authored on the evaluation of our local Community Court Program.

  • University of Nebraska-Lincoln (8 yrs 1 mo)
    • Trial Consultant
      2016 - 2022 · 6 yrs

      Jury trial research consultant with Scientific Resources for the Law (SRL) at UNL. Conducted social media research on venirepersons, assisted with report writing, and interviewed shadow jurors.

    • Research Ambassador
      2016 - 2017 · 1 yr

      Advocated for undergraduate involvement in research, helped organize the Spring Poster Fair, and launched Research, Experience, & Discovery (RED) Talks, a platform for undergraduates to present their research.

    • Laboratory Coordinator
      2015 - 2017 · 2 yrs

      Coordinated the Law & Policy Lab for 2.5 years. Recruited, interviewed, and selected 30+ research assistants. Managed participant recruitment and a weekly data collection schedule. Spent one week at Scripps College implementing a study and training research assistants. Won 2 research grants of $2,400 each to conduct my honors thesis research and presented it at the 2017 AP-LS conference.