Lucy C Erickson, PhD

I am currently a UX Researcher at Amazon working to improve advertiser experience with Amazon Ads. Prior to working at Amazon, I worked as a Policy Advisor at Google from August 2020 to October of 2022, where I developed data-driven internal product policies through the lens of child safety issues. I served as a Senior UX Researcher on the Google Assistant for the final six months of this period, which led me to move back towards my research roots.

Prior to working at Google,  I was the Director of Science Programs for the Society for Women's Health Research, which is a nonprofit thought leader dedicated to promoting research on biological differences in disease and improving women’s health through science, policy, and education. Before that, I was an AAAS Science and Technology Policy Fellow hosted by the National Science Foundation.  I worked in the Computer and Information Science and Engineering (CISE) Directorate, where I contributed to a variety of programs and initiatives related to data science. I brought a unique perspective on human-technology interactions  to CISE as a result of my research psychology background focusing on child development, cognition, and learning.  

I earned my Ph.D. in Developmental Psychology from Carnegie Mellon University, where I conducted research on statistical learning abilities and language learning with Prof. Erik Thiessen. My research has focused on the factors (e.g., parental language input; infant cognitive abilities) that interact to support successful infant language development. I've also completed postdoctoral research in child language and cognitive development at the University of Maryland, College Park, and at Georg August Universitaet Goettingen in Germany. 

You can contact me at my work email account at lerix AT amazon DOT com.