Joshua Bostick designs behavioral science-informed digital health systems for organizations navigating complex implementation environments. His work operates at the structural layer where healthcare technology, AI governance, and institutional accountability converge.

 

As Co-Founder of Bostick Global Strategies, Joshua works with healthcare organizations, federal stakeholders, and emerging technology ventures to align behavioral evidence, technical architecture, and operational realities. He focuses on the structural failure points that undermine digital health initiatives, including workflow misalignment, incentive distortion, governance gaps, and adoption breakdowns, particularly in environments requiring regulatory and board-level scrutiny.

 

Joshua’s foundation is in applied behavioral research. At Stanford University’s Virtual Human Interaction Lab, he served as Social Science Research Coordinator and Protocol Director on federally supported research examining embodiment, empathy, and learning in immersive environments. His work contributed to peer-reviewed publications in PLOS ONE and the Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, examining how immersive perspective-taking and virtual embodiment influence cognitive empathy and behavioral engagement.

 

He later applied that research lens to enterprise-scale product environments, including leading cross-functional initiatives at SAP that scaled cloud and mobile platforms from approximately 20,000 to 70,000 monthly active users. Across subsequent engagements, he has concentrated on ensuring that digital health systems withstand behavioral, regulatory, and organizational constraints, not merely technical requirements.

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Joshua integrates implementation science methodologies, AI governance frameworks, and scaled delivery systems to support initiatives requiring institutional durability and executive accountability. His executive coaching certification from the University of Pennsylvania (ICF-accredited) strengthens his capacity to address leadership alignment and organizational change dynamics within complex health systems.

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Joshua has developed early-stage innovation prototypes in augmented reality and AI-enabled mental health systems, achieving competitive recognition as a two-time finalist in the George Washington University Pitch George Competition and semi-finalist in the GWU New Venture Competition. His work was also featured in Stanford University’s Big Idea Festival.

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He holds dual degrees from Stanford University, an MBA and MS in Information Systems Technology (STEM) from The George Washington University, and conducts doctoral research examining behavioral science applications in mental health and systems-level intervention design. He also conducts graduate research at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health focused on implementation science and health equity in digital health systems. He completed executive training in Artificial Intelligence at MIT and earned full merit-based scholarships during his academic studies at both Stanford University and The George Washington University.

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Areas of Focus

• Digital Health Implementation & AI Governance

• Behavioral Risk Assessment & Adoption Strategy

• Enterprise Systems Alignment & Regulatory Navigation

• Federal Health Technology Modernization

• Implementation Science & Health Equity

His work is grounded in a core principle: digital health initiatives fail less from technological limitation than from misaligned incentives, governance blind spots, and underestimated behavioral complexity.

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Selected Publications

1. van Loon, A., Bailenson, J., Zaki, J., Bostick, J., & Willer, R. (2018). Virtual reality perspective-taking increases cognitive empathy for specific others. PLOS ONE, 13(8), e0202442. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0202442

2. Ahn, S. J., Bostick, J., Ogle, E., Nowak, K., McGillicuddy, K., & Bailenson, J. N. (2016). Experiencing nature: Embodying animals in immersive virtual environments increases inclusion of nature in self and involvement with nature. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 21(6), 399–419. https://doi.org/10.1111/jcc4.12173