He received his doctorate in history, with a focus on Imperial and Colonial Studies, from The George Washington University. Stephen's research centres around issues of national identity in the era of decolonisation, and has been shaped by his involvement in the National History Center’s Decolonization Seminar. Part of this research was published in the Journal of Imperial and Commonwealth History in 2014. Stephen is also dedicated to the digital humanities, serving as an editor for the online community of scholars H-Empire as well as being the Media Director for the North American Conference on British Studies.