Douglas A. Hershey is emeritus full professor of psychology and former director of the Retirement Planning Research Laboratory, which was housed at Oklahoma State University from 1996 to 2021. Hershey received his Ph.D. in 1990 from the University of Southern California with a specialization in aging and life planning. His research focuses on the psychological, social, and economic factors that motivate individuals to plan and save for retirement. When not writing articles, Hershey enjoys bicycling, pan-Asian cooking, and visiting the Netherlands. (douglas.hershey@okstate.edu)
Notable Lab Alumnae
Janet L. Koposko is a lab alum who is currently an Assistant Professor of Rural Sociology at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College (ABAC) in Tifton, Georgia. While at OSU, Koposko examined the the extent to which different types of future time perspective influence different types of behavior. When not working hard preparing academic lectures, developing time perspective interventions, or dog sitting, Janitha enjoys road trips and exploring life on the edge. (jkoposko@abac.edu)
Helen Kiso is a lab alum who is currently an Associate Professor of Psychology at Susquehanna University in Selinsgrove, Pennsylvania. There, she is director of the Aging, Work, and Retirement Lab. Much of her work focuses on retirement quality of life, but she also has a strong interest in couples' communication patterns when engaged in planning for retirement. In her spare time Helen enjoys spending time with her husband, her girls Solana and Marcella, and her uber-cool dog, Evie. (kiso@susqu.edu)
Ritu Gupta ("Doctor G") worked in the RPRL as a visiting scholar a few years ago. She traveled to the US from India and spent a year studying how work and retirement issues are related to individuals' personal goals and time perspective. Gupta is now an Associate Professor of Human Resource Management at the T. A. Pei Management Institute (TAPMI)--one of the top business schools in India. She has brought the study of retirement to India, where this stage of life is not yet institutionalized, and thus, understudied. When not working in the lab Doctor G. enjoys spending time with her husband (the J-Man) and sons (Avi &Yuvi).
Alicia Farrell is an accomplished cognitive psychologist, former university professor, national keynote speaker and founder of Clearview Consulting. While a member of the Retirement Planning Research Laboratory, Alicia specialized in the development and delivery of retirement planning intervention programs. Dr. Farrell’s current mission is to help individuals, couples, families and organizations to find their strength and courage to make healthy decisions and changes in their lives and businesses. She is an expert at translating cutting-edge scientific research into practical everyday life, and she is the founder of "Boots on the Ground Parenting" approach. (alicia@aliciafarrellphd.com).)
Joy M. Jacobs-Lawson is a professor in the Department of Psychology at Bellarmine University in Louisville Kentucky. Dr. Jacobs-Lawson's research interests focus on real-world high risk decisions among members of the aging population. She has published articles on retirement planning decisions, financial investment decision making, and health related decisions. In these studies, she has examined the influences of risk taking, knowledge, sex, age, and personality on individuals' decision making processes. When not working, Joy enjoys spending time with her family, helping at her children’s schools or with their scouting activities, camping, swimming, and being creative.(jjacobslawson@bellarmine.edu).)
Other Research Collaborators
and Lab Alumni
Charles I. Abramson
Cherry Adjchavanich
Jason Allaire
Thomas B. Ayres
Kathy S. Austin
Sofia Beltran
Martha I. Bojórquez
Montrey Bond
Misty Boyd
Ruby Brougham
Allison (Allie) Broussard
Carol Brown
Steven Carter
Yung-Ping (Bing) Chen
Ada (Addy) S. Chulef
Elizabeth Close
Lauren Coffey
Andrew Cole
Camille Collins
Hannie Comijs
Kendra Coutant
David Crouse
Cale Darling
Dorly D. J. H. Deeg
Jo Earl
Lucia Fanca
K. Timilli Frazier
Mike Freeland
Lisbeth Frostholm
Stormie Fuller
Stacy Gabriel
Jigyasu Gaur
Paul Gerrans
Jessica Gillard
Douglas Graham
Fumiaki Hamagami
Sharon B. Hamil
Tevy Heng
Kene Henkens
Clarissa Herndon
Ilda T. Hershey
Scott M. Hofer
John L. Horn
Sharbee Horne
Sherry Horning
Victor Igreja
Gayle Iwamasa
Janissa Jackson
Jessica Jones
Kimberly M. Jones
Gregory Keyser
Anya Kuboi
Erin Lane
Francisco P. Lozano III
Phillip A. Martin
Lisa Mauldin
John (Jack) J. McArdle
Dana P. McDaniel
Amanda Messer (Bradley)
Jennifer Mitchell-Copeland
Anna Mooney
Ray Morath
John C. Mowen
Allison Musicus
Kirstan A. Neukam
Cora Ortiz
Elizabeth Padawer
Daniel B. Pearce
Antonio E. Pérez
Sara Penning
Andrea M. Piccinin
Kirk Phillips
Stephen J. Reed
Nicole Rosell
Steve Schley
Jon Schneider
Roy Seguine
Dave Sherry
Robert S. Stawski
Sheril Stone
Darla Swann
Judith Swiger
Heavin Taylor
David G. Thomas
Katie Tomajan
Kathleen (Katie) Trujillo
Kathy Turner
Harry Van Dalen
David A. Walsh
Kimberly Wells
JoAnne Wilson (Dzuray)
Thomas L. Wilson