Benjamin Hiskes, Ph.D.
Office Location
Benjamin Hiskes, Ph.D., joined the Sacred Heart faculty in the fall of 2026, before which he was an assistant professor of psychology at North Carolina Wesleyan University for two years. He specializes in cognitive psychology, particularly the cognition of language and narratives, and he holds a joint Ph.D. in Cognitive Science and English Literature from Indiana University, Bloomington. Hiskes’s background in both psychology and literary studies informs his teaching, in which he looks to encourage creative and active learning, particularly through incorporating films, short stories, poems, song lyrics, and the everyday narratives of social media. Outside of his teaching and research, Hiskes enjoys reading, running, hiking, and live music.
Degrees & Certifications
- Joint Ph.D. in Cognitive Science and English Literature, Indiana University, Bloomington
- MA in English, Indiana University, Bloomington
- BA in English and Neuroscience, Carleton College
Teaching Responsibilities
- Introduction to Psychology
- Psychology of Language
- Research Design & Analysis II
Research & Grants
Hiskes’ research centers around the cognition of narratives, or stories. He is interested in not only how people read, remember, and experience narratives, but also how the stories that we consume affect us off the page and beyond the screen. A primary interest of his current research program is in how people navigate stories that offer multiple paths of interpretation. One aspect of this larger research project is on how counterfactual events that could have happened but never did influence the narrative consumption experience. However, another primary interest of his research is on how texts can promote possibilistic thinking and perspective taking, particularly though the self-transcendent emotion of wonder. To explore these questions and others, Hiskes’ research combines tools and perspectives from cognitive science, psychology, philosophy, and literary studies.
Hiskes enjoys collaborating with students, and he encourages students interested in his research to email him.