Stolle leads applied psychology initiatives on APA’s Psychology Team, where he works to connect psychological science with the real-world needs of organizations, professionals, and communities. His work centers on translating evidence into practical tools that promote optimal psychological performance and well-being, with a particular focus on how people think, decide, and perform in small-group and team-based settings. A core part of this effort involves helping people, organizations, and systems learn—because learning is essential for growth, adaptation, and flourishing. His approach strengthens resilience, purpose, psychological capital, and psychological safety, all of which support high-functioning group environments.
Stolle’s applied work spans several domains. He has extensive experience in legal psychology, where he has advanced research on jury and judicial decision-making and advised legal teams on communication, strategy, and human behavior in high-stakes settings. He has also examined how psychological science can support the emotional and organizational well-being of legal professionals and institutions. His legal career included serving as a capital partner in an AmLaw 100 firm, where he worked on complex federal matters and developed evidence-based approaches to understanding how people deliberate, decide, and perform under pressure. He also founded and led a national consulting practice devoted to applied psychology in the legal domain.
His work also examines human–technology interaction, including the psychological implications of artificial intelligence, monitoring technologies, and digital systems. He has served in advisory roles in human-centered computing and frequently presents on how emerging technologies influence performance, trust, and the ways people understand and engage with their environments.
In addition, Stolle contributes to interdisciplinary efforts linking psychological science with environmental sustainability and conservation. He collaborates with scientific and conservation partners to explore how motivation, learning, resilience, and well-being support communities responding to environmental change, including through briefing policymakers and participating in initiatives focused on the human dimensions of environmental challenges.
Stolle earned his PhD in social and personality psychology, his JD from the University of Nebraska, and his BS in psychology from Saint Louis University. Across all areas of his work, he maintains a consistent aim: to help groups, teams, and organizations use psychological science to enhance well-being, strengthen decision-making, and create conditions where people and systems can thrive. His approach emphasizes the flourishing side of psychological functioning—focusing less on illness and more on human potential, purpose, learning, and performance.