He obtained his Ph.D. from Temple University's Program in Brain, Behavior, and Cognition after graduating from the University of Georgia with concentration in psychology and linguistics. His research interests are in higher-order cognition and span the cognitive and brain sciences, including moral cognition, neuroethics, and psychology of fiction. He has published articles on language acquisition, the conceptual foundations of cognitive science, creativity, and robotics. He is currently an Associate Editor for the Journal of Theoretical and Philosophical Psychology and Secretary of APA's Division 24.