His research focuses on structural geology and geomechanics, with emphasis on the behavior of fractures in the earth's crust. Current and past research applications include earthquake physics (including frictional behavior of rocks and coseismic off-fault deformation), crustal deformation, igneous and clastic intrusions, rock physical properties, and geological hazards in underground openings. Dr. Griffith served as an NSF international postdoctoral scholar at the Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia in Rome from 2008-09. He earned a Ph.D. in Geological and Environmental Science from Stanford University in 2008, an M.S. in Geosciences from the University of Massachusetts in 2003, and a B.S. in Geology from the College of William and Mary in 1999.