Cat Hicks, PhD
Psychology of Software Teams | Storyteller
Hi. I'm a psychologist studying software teams, a research leader, an empirical interventionist, and a creative entrepreneur.
I'm the VP of Research Insights for Pluralsight, where I founded the Developer Success Lab, an empirical research lab creating open science for developers and their teams.
I also founded Catharsis Consulting, an evidence science consultancy that connects businesses and nonprofits with small teams of domain expert scientists to produce world-class intervention & impact research.
I've always thrived at the intersections: a quantitative scientist who cares more about how we measure things than the bigness of our data, a rigorous researcher who is laser-focused on practical change and the messy interactions of the real world. I love using data and stories to make better sense of the world and drive real, transformative change that improves people's lives.
I specialize in applied social science that helps real people.
I hold a PhD in Empirical Quantitative Psychology from UC San Diego and was a postdoctoral fellow in Computer Science & Engineering and Cognitive Science at the Design Lab at UC San Diego. My research has influenced practice at organizations like Google, Duke University, Vanguard, UC San Diego CSE, Stanford University, Coursera, and others.
Much of my applied research has been within organizations. However, I keynote for technology organizations and publish and present in academic peer-reviewed venues such as IEEE Software, CHI, the American Psychological Association, the Society for Research in Child Development, Developmental Science, the British Journal of Developmental Psychology, the Journal of Workplace Learning, the International Convention of Psychological Science, Coursera Partners' Conference, and Infant and Child Development.
Some selected work:
Hicks, C. M. (2024). Psychological Affordances Can Provide a Missing Explanatory Layer for Why Interventions to Improve Developer Experience Take Hold or Fail.
Lee, C. S., & Hicks, C. M. (2024). Understanding and effectively mitigating code review anxiety. Empirical Software Engineering, 29(6), 161.
Hicks, C. M., Lee, C. S., Ramsey, M. Developer Thriving: four sociocognitive factors that create resilient productivity on software teams. IEEE Software (2024).
Hicks, C. (2021) It’s Like Coding in the Dark: The need for learning cultures within coding teams [White Paper], Catharsis Consulting. [https://www.catharsisinsight.com/reports]
Weatherholtz, K., Grimaldi, P., Hicks, C., Hill, K.M., Freeman, C., Akbayin-Sahin, B., Coker, C., Ma, J., & Henneman, L. (2020). Use of Khan Academy Official SAT Practice and SAT Achievement: An Observational Study. Mountain View, CA: Khan Academy.
Speaking
I frequently speak at industry conferences, technology centers of excellence, academic research centers, and business events to audiences such as engineering leaders, technology teams, digital transformation laboratories and consultancies, and groups that want to elevate their understanding of research, data, and the science of thriving software teams.
Folks have described my research talks as "epic," "warm and brilliant," and "incredibly validating."
I prioritize events that have a demonstrated commitment to women in tech and LGBTQ+ speakers, accessibility such as virtual attendance options & student scholarships, and disability justice and safety in providing high standards of ventilation-based covid-19 mitigation in venues (e.g., outdoor venues, air purifiers, high standards for ventilation and adequate room size).
Some recent events:
