Current Lab Members
Lucia Ciciolla, Ph.D., Director
Dr. Lucia Ciciolla is an Associate Professor in the College of Arts and Sciences, Department of Psychology at Oklahoma State University. Dr. Ciciolla earned her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology with an emphasis in child and family science and quantitative science from Arizona State University (ASU), and completed an APA-accredited internship at the University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill School of Medicine in the Child-Community track. Dr. Ciciolla was trained as a clinical scientist with specializations in infancy and early childhood, perinatal and maternal mental health, parenting, trauma, and longitudinal methodology.
Dr. Ciciolla is passionate about the health and well-being of women, children, and families. She is an advocate for research, education, and treatment promoting family well-being through the following organizations:
Graduate Students
Ashley Quigley, M.S.
Ashley Quigley is a sixth-year graduate student in the Oklahoma State University Clinical Psychology Ph.D. program where she works with Dr. Lucia Ciciolla. Ashley graduated with her Bachelor's Degree and Master's Degree from Western Kentucky University before attending OSU. She was a research assistant in the Children and Families Lab under Dr. Diane Lickenbrock and completed a Master's Thesis examining the influential roles of infant temperament and parent psychopathology on infant emotion regulation. Broadly, Ashley's research interests include how parenting and child factors can impact socioemotional development and how it is related to risk and resilience.
Kristin Fields Creech, M.S.
Kristin Fields Creech is a fifth-year graduate student in the Oklahoma State University Clinical Psychology Ph.D. program working under Dr. Lucia Ciciolla. Kristin graduated from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville with a Bachelor’s in Psychology and minor in Child and Family Studies. She was a research assistant in the Child and Adolescent Development Lab led by Dr. Jenny Macfie and the Relationship, Aggression, and Addictive Disorders Lab under Dr. Gregory Stuart. She is currently working on her dissertation exploring early medical complexity and psychosocial factors as predictor of neurodevelopmental assessment amongst infants prenatally exposed to substances. Kristin is broadly interested in the relationship between early life experiences and social determinants on behavioral health outcomes amongst mothers and infants.
Elizabeth Hinckley, B.A.
Elizabeth Hinckley is a third-year graduate student in the Oklahoma State University Clinical Psychology Ph.D. program working under Dr. Lucia Ciciolla. Elizabeth graduated with honors from the University of Michigan in 2018 with a BA in Biopsychology, Cognition, and Neuroscience (BCN) and Spanish. As an undergraduate student, she completed her honors thesis under Dr. Ethan Kross and examined mothers use of self-distanced language as an emotion regulation strategy during stressful encounters with their children. After graduating, Elizabeth worked as a clinical research coordinator at the University of Michigan and then Vanderbilt University using psychobiological methods to study the effects of adversity across the lifespan. Her overarching research interests include risk factors during pregnancy and interventions that leverage caregiving practices to promote resilience and prevent the development of psychopathology in mother and child. Additionally, Elizabeth is eager to study the effects of maternal mental health and stress during the perinatal period on early child development.
Immanuela-Nicole Enwesi, B.S./B.A.
Immanuela-Nicole Enwesi is a first-year graduate student in the Oklahoma State University Experimental Psychology Ph.D. program, where she is mentored by Dr. Lucia Ciciolla and Dr. Dian Yu. She earned her B.S. in Neuroscience and B.A. in French Studies from the University of Maryland, College Park, in 2024. As an undergraduate, she conducted research in the Child Development Lab under Dr. Nathan Fox and the Neurocognitive Development Lab under Dr. Tracy Riggins. During this time, she worked on the Origins of Infant Temperament Study with Dr. Fox and contributed to the Healthy Brain and Child Development (HBCD) study with Dr. Riggins—a project she continues to be involved with at OSU-CHS.
Her research interests include maternal-infant interactions, particularly how their sleep patterns influence one another. She is also interested in early language acquisition and using MRI techniques to study brain development in infants.
Research Staff
Madyson Kirkendoll
Madyson Kirkendoll is a current undergraduate student at OSU and works as a research assistant for Dr. Lucia Ciciolla and Dr. Kara Kerr through OSU-CHS and CIRCA. Madyson will graduate from Oklahoma State University in December with a Bachelor of Science in Psychology and a Bachelor of Science in Sociology. Madyson uses her past work experience as a phlebotomist trainer to support data collection and enjoys working with research participants. Her long-term goals include obtaining a Master of Science in Counseling and a PhD in Clinical Psychology to help advocate for children and adolescents from disadvantaged and traditionally underserved backgrounds.
Undergraduate Research Assistants
Emma Phelps
Emma Phelps is a third-year undergraduate student at Oklahoma State University. She is pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Psychology with a minor in Child Development along with a General Honors Completion Degree. She aims to get her EdS in School Psychology to become a school child psychologist. Her broad interests include studies of attachment styles, parent-child relationships, children and their impact in future life, as well as neuropsychiatric disorders such as PTSD, OCD and ADHD.
Emily Wolfe
Emily Wolfe is a junior-level undergraduate student at Oklahoma State University. She is pursuing a major in Psychology Pre-Law with a minor in Spanish. Her broad interests include mother-child relationships and child development. She plans to attend grad school following graduation.