Academic Credentials
  • Ph.D., Psychology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, 2023
  • B.S., Cognitive Neuroscience, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, 2015
Academic Appointments
  • Graduate Student Instructor, Department of Psychology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor (2019 – 2022)
Professional Honors
  • Ed Smith Award for Excellence in Cognitive Neuroscience (2023
Professional Affiliations
  • Society for Neuroscience
  • Cognitive Neuroscience Society

Dr. Emery-Ahn specializes in human sensory perception with research experience spanning multisensory processing, audiovisual integration, signal detection, reaction time, error processing, and cognitive impairments in individuals with neurological disorders. Using her expertise in human perception and behavior, she investigates and analyzes human factors and performance across a broad spectrum of scenarios including transportation and pedestrian accidents, trip-and-fall incidents, product warnings, and consumer product usability.

Prior to joining Exponent, Dr. Emery-Ahn completed her PhD in Psychology (with a focus on Cognitive Neuroscience) and Scientific Computing from University of Michigan. Her doctoral research focused on the neural mechanisms underlying multisensory perception, i.e., how information from one sensory system influences processing in other sensory systems. Her primary focus was on the interplay between audition and vision, exploring the ways in which sounds shape our visual perceptions and how our vision, in turn, influences what we hear. Her work investigated how visual information may be used to extract auditory information as well as when and how the brain integrates these sensory inputs such that they are perceived as originating from a single source even when vision and audition provide conflicting information.

In addition to her core research, Dr. Emery-Ahn has investigated brain signals related to error production and altered sensory and cognitive functions in brain tumor patients with the goal of improving functional outcomes of patients following brain surgery. Specifically, her tumor work focused on human factors that influence accurate patient evaluation during awake brain surgeries as well as characteristics of the brain tumors associated with greater cognitive impairments. In doing so, she utilizes a variety of methods such as psychophysics, neuroimaging, brain stimulation, and lesion mapping to address her research questions.