Login as a registered member of EHBEA to submit items for the Bulletin Board online. Non-members can email Lisa DeBruine to submit job and PhD adverts, conference and seminar adverts, or other items of interest to the bulletin board.
You can also view the Bulletin Board as an RSS feed.
Show AllBulletin Board
expires: 11 February 2012
Leverhulme MPhil/PhD Studentships 2012
UCL Anthropology is offering two MPhil/PhD studentships (3 years) on the Leverhulme funded project “Hunter-gatherers resilience: Past, present and future adaptations to a world in transition”, to begin by 1 March 2012.
Students will work on the behavioural ecology of Agta hunter-gatherers in the Philippines focusing on patterns of demography, life history, food sharing, cooperation, mobility, kin structure, cultural transmission and biological adaptations. It is expected that the student will spend at least 6 months living in the field and will have strong interest in fieldwork, collecting the necessary data for the PhD as well as saliva samples for future genetic analyses. Students will have the possibility to work with genetic analyses if interested.
We are particularly interested in candidates with background in one or more of the following: behavioural ecology, evolutionary demography, demographic modelling, hunter-gatherer studies, life history theory applied to human populations and/or phylogenetic analyses. The selected candidates must hold a degree in Biological Anthropology, Evolutionary Biology, Genetics or similar fields and ideally will have previous experience fieldwork and multilevel statistical analyses.
A job description and person specification can be found here. Informal enquiries can be sent to Dr Andrea Migliano, a.migliano@ucl.ac.uk.
Deadline for submission of the completed UCL admissions application and statement of intent to apply for the specific Leverhulme award at UCL Anthropology: 10 February 2012.
Apply online at www.ucl.ac.uk/prospective-students/graduate-study.
expires: 21 October 2012
Culture, Mind, and Brain: Emerging Concepts, Methods, Applications
- Conference: 5th FPR-UCLA Interdisciplinary Conference
- Date:October 19-20, 2012
- Location: UCLA campus, Los Angeles, California, USA
Description:
Many lines of research on culture, mind, and brain can no longer be neatly separated. Some questions run together, thanks to our growing understanding of the genome, the biological roots of human sociality, and the mutual constitution of cultures and selves, as well as the complex interactions between the physical, cultural, and social environments underlying health and illness.
The aim of this 2-day conference is to highlight emerging concepts, methodologies and applications in the study of culture, mind, and brain, with particular attention to: (1) cutting-edge neuroscience research that is successfully incorporating culture and the social world; (2) the context in which methods are used as well as the tacit assumptions that shape research questions; and (3) the kinds and quality of collaborations that can advance interdisciplinary research training.
The conference is designed to appeal to a wide academic audience of biologists, neuroscientists, psychologists, anthropologists, sociologists, epidemiologists, and those in related fields interested in learning about cutting-edge interdisciplinary research at the intersection of culture, mind, and brain.
Registration for our conference will open in January or February.
expires: 01 January 2013
The Journal of Evolutionary Psychology
The Journal of Evolutionary Psychology publishes papers that apply evolutionary theory to the human behavioural sciences, thereby interpreting psychology in its broadest sense. It is listed on SCOPUS and PsychINFO, and has an impact factor of 0.279.
The editors and international editorial board are interested in theoretical and empirical submissions from scholars in all relevant disciplines including, but not exclusively, psychology, anthropology, biology and human behavioural ecology.
JEP is published both in printed form and online. Currently all of the issues from 2009 to 2011, in volumes 7, 8 and 9, are open access.
All papers published in 2012 will be open access also, with NO requirement for author payment. Submissions will be treated promptly with quick turn around times for decisions.
JEP can be found at: http://jevolpsych.org
And authors can submit their manuscripts here: http://www.editorialmanager.com/jep/
We look forward to reading your submissions!
Dr Tom Dickins, Editor-in-Chief, Journal of Evolutionary Psychology, JEP@uel.ac.uk
expires: 01 April 2012
Meta-analysis on facial mimicry
Tony Manstead and Martin Bruder are carrying out a meta-analysis of the research literature on spontaneous mimicry of emotional facial expressions. Having already coded most of the published work on this topic, they would now be grateful for your help in identifying any relevant unpublished research or in press papers or chapters -- or indeed any published work that is unlikely to have been identified by a database search focusing on mimicry-related keywords.
Relevant studies are those in which participants were presented with facial expressions of emotion (e.g., drawings, still photos, avatars, video-taped persons, actors, real participants, etc., showing expressions of happiness, anger, sadness, pain, disgust, etc.) and participants’ spontaneous facial reactions to these stimuli were measured (usually by EMG or behavioral coding procedures such as FACS). Our current plan is not to include studies that (a) examined mimicry of gestures, mannerisms, or non-emotional facial displays, (b) used instructed mimicry procedures, or (c) are based on clinical samples only.
Please either send us the relevant information (e.g., a manuscript) by e-mail or submit it through our website at http://www.unipark.de/uc/mimicry/
Studies that did not yield significant results are of course just as relevant and important as those that did. Please do not hesitate to contact us at
Your help is much appreciated!
expires: 25 February 2012
The Chimpanzee & Human Communication Institute (CHCI) Summer 2012 Apprentice Program
The Chimpanzee & Human Communication Institute (CHCI) is currently taking applications for our Summer 2012 Apprentice Program. Graduates, undergraduates, and post-graduates from various academic backgrounds (e.g. Anthropology, Biology, Psychology, Linguistics, Philosophy, etc.) and all nationalities are encouraged to apply. The dates of the program are June 24 to August 17, 2012.
The research at CHCI involves a group of chimpanzees who use the signs of American Sign Language (ASL). Washoe, Moja, Tatu, and Dar were part of the cross-fostering research that began in 1966 with Drs. R.A. & B.T. Gardner. Each chimpanzee was raised in an enriched environment in which his or her human family members used only ASL, much like the environment in which a deaf human child grows up. Loulis was adopted by Washoe in 1978 and learned his signs from chimpanzees. Currently, Tatu, Dar, and Loulis reside at CHCI on the campus of Central Washington University in Ellensburg, WA, in a large state-of-the-art facility.
Apprentices are at the institute daily -- cleaning enclosures, preparing meals and enrichment, making observations of the chimpanzees, and participating in one or more research projects. The first week is intensive training in laboratory jobs and chimpanzee behaviors. After several weeks each apprentice becomes more autonomous and has responsibilities in research and husbandry. The philosophy of CHCI is that the needs of the chimpanzees come first. Apprentices are trained in humane care and research techniques.
The program fee is $1900 and there is a non-refundable $25 application processing fee. The costs do not include housing and transportation. Housing is available on campus. A course in ASL is highly recommended but not required. For more information on the program and the application please see our web page at http://www.cwu.edu/~cwuchci/apprentice.html or contact Bonnie Hendrickson by email at hendricksonb@cwu.edu or by mail CHCI-CWU, 400 East University Way, Ellensburg, WA 98926. The deadline to apply is February 24, 2012.
expires: 01 September 2012
Assistant Professor of Psychology, Oakland University, Michigan, USA
The Department of Psychology at Oakland University invites applications for a tenure-track appointment in BIOLOGICAL PSYCHOLOGY at the Assistant Professor level beginning Fall, 2012 from candidates whose research interest is focused on the biological basis of human psychological and behavioral processes. Preference will be given to candidates whose research involves methodologies for investigation of human biology. Candidates in any relevant discipline of psychology or closely related field are encouraged to apply. A market competitive salary plus excellent fringe benefits are provided.
Qualified applicants are expected to have a Ph.D. in psychology or closely related field as well as interest in teaching courses in basic and biological psychological processes at the undergraduate and graduate levels. Qualified applicants must show potential that leads to developing a productive research program as evidenced through publications in academic journals, teaching at the undergraduate and graduate levels, and becoming involved in university and professional activities. The Department of Psychology is in the latter stages of seeking university approval for a graduate program (M.S. and Ph.D.) to be implemented in Fall, 2012. In addition to collaborative opportunities with the faculty of the Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine, well-developed mechanisms are in place for establishing and funding multidisciplinary research across Oakland University faculty and the William Beaumont Health System.
Oakland University is a state-supported comprehensive research institution with nearly 20,000 students located in a suburban area 30 miles north of Detroit. Oakland University is an ADVANCE institution, one of a limited number of universities in receipt of NSF funds in support of our commitment to increase diversity and the participation and advancement of women and underrepresented minorities in STEM.
In addition to a curriculum vitae and cover letter, applicants must submit electronically a statement of professional interests and goals regarding teaching and research and up to three representative reprints or preprints at https://academicjobs.oakland.edu/postings/102. Please arrange for the electronic submission of at least three letters of reference. Inquiries and letters of reference should be directed to Dr. Ranald Hansen, Search Committee Chair, hansen@oakland.edu. Review of applications will begin immediately and will continue until the position is filled. Oakland University is an equal opportunity employer, and women and minority candidates are encouraged to apply.
expires: 19 October 2012
New Developments in Signaling and Game Theory
International Conference at the Congress Centre of ETH Zurich, The Centro Stefano Franscini Situated at Monte Verità, October 14th to October 19th, 2012
- Organizers: Andreas Diekmann, Bruno S. Frey, Wojtek Przepiorka, Eckart Voland
- Committee: Friedel Bolle, Lars-Erik Cederman, Jürg Helbling, Dirk Helbing, Gérard Hertig, Ryan O. Murphy, Susanne Neckermann, Werner Raub
- Conference Office: Stefan Wehrli (wehrlist@ethz.ch)
Why do firms invest large sums in advertisement? Why do students spend great effort on highly selective educational courses? Why do people follow certain dress codes although norm compliance is time-consuming and costly? Why do banks invest in marble entrance halls? Why did the path of evolution lead to the magnificent tail feathers of a peacock although this luxury inhibits the movement of the bird? Signaling theory put forward by economist Michael Spence and biologist Amotz Zahavi provides an answer. Costly signals convey reliable information on an unobserved trait of the sender whereby this information is of importance for both the sender and the receiver. If signals become too cheap they may be faked and, therefore, they will loose their power to convey reliable information. Signaling theory yields an explanation for the paradox of the ubiquity and stability of costly and wasteful activities to be observed in human social life as well as in animal behavior.
Game theory supplies a formal language to define signaling theory more precisely. With game models of incomplete information and signaling one can identify conditions that generate a so-called separating signaling equilibrium. Knowing these conditions the researcher can make predictions that have to be verified by field research, experiments or other empirical methods.
Signaling theory is now applied in very different fields and disciplines such as economics, political science, anthropology, sociology, psychology and biology. Although applications are often still quite speculative, the principles of signaling theory are well acknowledged in biology and the social sciences. The international and interdisciplinary conference will focus on new developments of signaling theory, model building, applications in the various disciplines, and empirical corroborations of the theory.
We welcome contributions on (but not restricted to) the following topics:
- New developments in signaling theory and model building
- The impact of models from signaling and game theory on the social sciences and biology
- Experimental studies and field experiments based on hypotheses from signaling theory
- Applications of signaling theory in economics, political science, anthropology, sociology, psychology and biology
Contributions (title, abstract, manuscript if available) should be submitted no later than January 31st, 2012 to one of the organizers or to Stefan Wehrli (wehrlist@ethz.ch). Please mention whether you apply for a conference presentation or a poster session.
expires: 01 March 2012
The Second Social Learning Strategies Tournament
The Second Social Learning Strategies Tournament, which has a total of 25,000 euro available as prize money, is now open for entries. The tournament is a competition designed to establish the most effective means to learn in a complex, variable environment.
In recent years, there has been a lot of interest (spanning several research fields, but especially economics, anthropology, and biology) in the problem of how best to acquire valuable information from others. The first Social Learning Strategies Tournament, inspired by Robert Axelrod's famous Prisoner's Dilemma tournaments on the evolution of cooperation, attracted over 100 entries from all around the world, and a paper detailing the results was published in the journal Science in 2010. The high level of interest convinced us that it would be worthwhile to organise a second tournament in which some of the restricting assumptions of the first could be relaxed, so as to explore a broader range of questions. We have received funding for this from the European Research Council, and a committee of world-leading scientists have helped us to design the tournament game, including Sam Bowles (Santa Fe Institute), Rob Boyd (UCLA), Marc Feldman (Stanford), Magnus Enquist (Stockholm), Kimmo Erikkson (Stockholm) and Richard McElreath (UC Davis).
Entrants will be required to submit behavioural strategies detailing how to respond to the problem of resource gain in a complex, variable environment through combinations of individual and social learning. Three extensions to the first tournament game will (i) explore the effects of learners being able to select from whom to learn, (ii) allow agents to refine existing behavior cumulatively, and (iii) place the action in a spatially structured population with multiple demes. A total of 25,000 euro prize money is available, divided into three 5,000 euro prizes for the best strategy under any single extension, and a 10,000 euro prize for the best strategy under all three extensions.
The competition is now open for entries, with a closing date of February 28 2011. More information can be found at:
http://lalandlab.st-andrews.ac.uk/tournament2/
expires: 01 January 2013
Funding for meetings available from HBES ($1000-$3000)
On 18/06/2010, the Executive Council of the Human Behavior and Evolution Society (HBES) unanimously passed a resolution to make funds available for partial support of meetings where the goal is promote the study of behaviour from an evolutionary perspective in ways likely to be of special interest to our membership. Proposals from members in the range of $1,000 (US) to $3,000 (US) may be submitted on an ad hoc basis to President Randy Thornhill for distribution and consideration by the Executive Council. If you have questions regarding what sort of proposals and budget items are acceptable, please contact an Executive Council member for guidance.
expires:
Ethnographic Database Project
The Ethnographic Database Project (EDP) is a web-based interface for the standardisation of comparative ethnographic data. The EDP enables anthropologists to enter information about their field research using a set of standard codes developed for cross-cultural application; the codes relate to a society's organization, kinship and marriage practices, subsistence economy, and pattern of sexual division of labor. The EDP is in the form of a web-based questionnaire, which can be accessed from any computer connected to the internet.
The EDP aims to complement widely-used comparative ethnographic datasets such as the Ethnographic Atlas and the Standard Cross-Cultural Sample by: (i) obtaining data directly from anthropologists who conducted field research in the societies of interest, (ii) using standard codes developed for cross-cultural application for all societies, (iii) expanding the range of societies for which coded ethnographic data are available.
The first stage of the EDP includes societies speaking Indo-European languages, which are underrepresented in the existing ethnographic databases. We welcome contributions from researchers who have conducted fieldwork in societies speaking these languages.
Visit the EDP website at http://www.ucl.ac.uk/~ucsalfo/EDP to read more about this project, to view a sample version of the EDP, and to find out how to contribute. Please forward this link to anyone who may be interested in this project!
