Evolution of Human Behaviour
As well as the question of proximate causation (how is this behaviour produced?), we often want to ask the question of why a particular behaviour pattern might have been favoured by natural selection (why does this behaviour pattern exist?). Answering this question requires the integration of theory and empirical data, and Centre members specialise in taking ideas from humans and testing them in other species, and vice versa.
Our main research strengths in this area are:
We have a number of other interests, including sex ratios, the evolution of emotions, and of personality variation. These interests also overlap with members in other research themes, for example the study of personality in wild starlings in relation to their behaviour and ecology (Whittingham), and how evolutionary aproaches to understanding emotion may help in the assessment of animal welfare (Bateson). This integration of ideas and methods across levels of explanation is one of the key strengths to the study of behaviour within the Centre.
Staff Profiles:
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Professor Melissa Bateson
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Dr John Lazarus
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Professor Daniel Nettle
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Dr Gilbert Roberts
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Dr Martin Tovee
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