Cognitive Performance Psychologist: Mark Wilkes
I have a distinct childhood memory of sitting around the dinner table with a friend’s family. The rituals surrounding who sat where, how the food was prepared and served, and the conversation between the parents and children differed from mine. It is my first memory of asking myself why people behave the way they do.
This is a question that has remained with me through the years. I ask it when I see a person doing something that seems out of the ordinary, when they engage in behaviors that don’t produce the result they are searching for, and when the relationship between those behaviors and results seem so manifestly obvious. I began to realize, I needed to ask that question of myself. Why did I engage in behavior that was against my own interest? Why did I stop myself from taking action that would be an obvious benefit? Why were things that seemed logically attainable so far from my reach?
Those questions led me to the study of psychology, to a graduate degree focused on how social systems impact the way we think, feel, and behave as individuals in those systemic contexts, and finally to Ph.D. studies in organizational psychology. This is a subject matter that has fascinated me as far back as that dinner at my friend’s house.
I love working with individuals and organizations to optimize cognitive and behavioral systems, maximize personal and organizational performance, help increase professional and personal satisfaction, and find well-being and balance in life. Today I focus on occupational psychology for attorneys. As a cognitive performance psychologist with a background in law, I find it particularly rewarding because I understand the incredibly high-stress environments attorneys are subject to and how it affects their professional and personal life.
Outside Interests
Mark is more than a cognitive performance psychologist, he enjoys skiing, biking, and running in the mountains near his home. He plays the piano and cello and spends substantial time reading and writing. He has been married for almost twenty years and has six children.
Professional Background
Mark worked in corporate compliance for ten years. He is a practicing psychotherapist focused on cognitive performance psychology for law firms. He is pursuing his Ph.D. in industrial and organizational psychology.