Joseph Stephens

Joseph 'Beau' Stephens is a Professor in the School of Psychology at Xavier University. He holds a Ph.D. in Psychology from Carnegie Mellon University where he trained at the Center for the Neural Basis of Cognition, and a B.A. in Germanic Studies from Indiana University. Previously, he served for 16 years as faculty at North Carolina A&T State University.

Dr. Stephens' research examines cognitive and neural mechanisms underlying auditory/visual perception, speech/language processing, memory systems, decision-making, and cognitive aging. His collaborative work has been funded by the National Institutes of Health, National Science Foundation, and Air Force Research Laboratory.

His recent publications demonstrate a strong interdisciplinary focus spanning cybersecurity behavior (2024-2025), memory mechanisms (2013-2021), auditory processing disorders (2020), and cognitive aging (2013-2018). This reflects a consistent integration of experimental psychology with neuroscience and applied human factors research.

He directs the Neuro-mechanX Lab and maintains active collaborations across institutions. Current funding sources include federal grants supporting his investigations into sensory processing, learning mechanisms, and age-related cognitive changes.