Episode #4: Interview with Jennifer Phillips

Naturalistic Decision Making

Date: 5/1/2020

Show Description:

“Today we welcome our pal, Jennifer Phillips. Jenni is the CEO of the Cognitive Performance Group, which she cofounded in 2006. Her work focuses expert decision-making, primarily in the military training community. She and her colleagues at CPG have pioneered research into the development of skilled performance, and designed innovation in the areas of decision-centered training and assessment, including the development and application of mastery models. Among her many publications is a chapter in the Oxford Handbook of Expertise exploring mastery models and their value in supporting the acquisition and assessment of expertise.”

Learn More About Jenni:

Cognitive Performance Group

Developing Mastery Models to Support the Acquisition and Assessment of Expertise

Learn more about NDM:

NaturalisticDecisionMaking.org

Journal of Cognitive Engineering and Decision Making

Where to find hosts Brian Moon and Laura Militello:

Brian’s website

Brian’s LinkedIn

Brian’s Twitter

Laura’s website

Laura’s LinkedIn

Laura’s Twitter

Timestamps:

Jenny describes her focus of expertise, including tactical thinking in the marine corps and mastery models [1:30]

Jenni breaks down the term “mastery model” and its stages [3:45]

Jenni gives a mastery model example from her work with marine corps instructors [6:05]

Work on assessment of decision skills, performance rubrics, and the process of adaptability [9:50]

Major influences in Jenni’s career in NDM [14:05]

Other people and organizations outside the NDM community who have impacted Jenni’s work [16:30]

What makes Jenni’s approach and expertise unique in her field [19:15]

Challenges and nuances of working in a military environment [21:30]

Difficulty getting buy-in to conduct research in law enforcement [23:45]

A favorite anecdote from research in IED defeat work [24:45]

Some distinct and difficult nuances of IED defeat work in Afghanistan and Iraq [29:45]

Meaning and application of “cognitive fidelity” [32:50]

A surprising characteristic of young researchers [35:20]

One single question that can determine if someone is an NDM practitioner [39:05]

Two truths and a lie [39:45]

Excitement about research on making mastery models work at a large scale [42:10]