About Dr. Stiegler-Balfour

I am an Associate Professor and Assistant Academic Director in the School of Social and Behavioral Sciences at UNE. As a cognitive psychologist, I regularly teach courses in Cognition and Memory, Consciousness, a seminar in Cognition and Learning, and courses in Statistics and Research Methods. I have also been serving as the faculty advisor of the PSI CHI chapter at UNE since 2011. I am also a member of the PSI CHI Global Initiatives Advisory Committee and the PSI CHI International Honor Society as of August 2022.

As the principal investigator of the Reading Comprehension and Cognition (RCC) Lab, I have mentored dozens of undergraduate students in the lab since 2010 (Student Profiles). As a researcher, I am focused on developing a deeper understanding of the cognitive processes involved in reading comprehension, memory, and learning. The ability to comprehend text and recall important facts or details – I believe – plays a critical part in the ability to navigate everyday life including succeeding in school but also the workplace. My work assessing the dynamic relation between reading skill, text characteristics and reading strategies has been recognized by the Society for Text and Discourse in the form of the Jason Albrecht Outstanding Young Scientist Award.

The results of my research studies are providing exciting new opportunities to further explore basic and applied questions of human cognition. One of my newest studies, for example, is focused on the impact of emerging technologies such as tablets on the reading comprehension process and learning. The goal of my research is to provide scientific knowledge that can inform educational practices and interventions.

I earned a Ph.D. in Cognitive Psychology as well as a M.S.T. in College Teaching from the University of New Hampshire in 2010 and have been a faculty member at the University of New England since 2010. Originally from Stuttgart, Germany, I have been living in the US for more than 15 years and my husband and I have made the coast of Maine our home. I have two sons, Liam and Mason, and when I am not in the lab I love to travel, garden, bicycle, practice yoga and play at the beach with my kids.