Professor Stemler's research involves the development of innovative ways of measuring broad constructs such as creativity, cultural competence, practical intelligence, and ethical reasoning. He is particularly interested in systematically studying the purposes of school (elementary through post-secondary) and how those purposes get measured via testing. Dr. Stemler has published more than 50 peer-reviewed articles, books, and chapters. His research has appeared in a number of top journals including the Journal of Educational Psychology, Educational Psychologist, Contemporary Educational Psychology, Intelligence, and the International Journal of Selection and Assessment. A 2020 study published in PLOS Biology listed him as being in top 2.5% of most highly cited scientists in the world across all fields of study and in the top 1% in the fields of social psychology and education.

Professor Stemler graduated with a B.S. in Psychology from the University of Washington. He then attained both an M.Ed. and Ph.D. in Educational Research, Measurement, and Evaluation from the Lynch School of Education at Boston College. Subsequently, he was appointed as a Postdoctoral Associate at Yale University, where he worked directly with Robert J. Sternberg (then president of the American Psychological Association) and ultimately joined the research faculty at Yale as an Associate Research Scientist and became the Assistant Director of the Center for the Psychology of Abilities, Competencies, and Expertise (PACE Center) at Yale. In 2005, Professor Stemler joined the faculty at Wesleyan University where he is currently appointed as a Professor of Psychology and Education Studies. He is the co-founder and co-chair of the College of Education Studies at Wesleyan. Professor Stemler served as the President of the New England Educational Research Organization (NEERO) from 2012-2014. He served on the Advisory Board for Aspiring Minds, India from 2012-2020 and currently serves on the advisory board for the Centre for Assessment Research, Policy and Practice in Education (CARPE) at Dublin City University, Ireland.