EHBEA NEW INVESTIGATORS
Nominations for the 2012 New Investigator Competition due 5pm GMT 10th December 2011
The EHBEA Steering Committee is calling for nominations for the 2012 EHBEA New Investigator's Award. The prize will be an expenses-paid plenary slot at the EHBEA 2012 annual conference in Durham, UK (25th-28th March). You are invited to nominate one or more candidates. Please use a separate copy of the form for each person you wish to nominate.
Eligibility: The basis for the award is an outstanding contribution to research within EHBEA's remit by someone near the beginning of their research career. Candidates should (i) be a current member of EHBEA, (ii) have a degree and PhD in a relevant topic, (iii) have less than 5 years postdoctoral experience, and (iv) have an exceptional track record of high-quality research in the field of evolution and human behaviour.
Nomination procedure: Candidates must be nominated and seconded by EHBEA members. Permission should be gained from candidates before nomination. The nominator should by the closing date send to the EHBEA secretary (i) a completed nomination form, (ii) a supporting statement (<300 words), (iii) the candidate's CV (restricted to 2 pages), and (iv) copies of the candidate's two best publications. All submissions will be sent for expert review and the EHBEA Steering Committee will select the winner on the basis of this material. Please submit your nominations by e-mail to the EHBEA Secretary (ehbea.secretary@googlemail.com) using the form overleaf (please send as an attachment).
2011 AWARD WINNER: Thom Scott-Phillips
Plenary Title: Communication, cognition, and the evolution of language
Abstract: Speaking very broadly, we can identify two different approaches to communication: the code model, in which meaning is fully encoded in the signal, and inferential communication, in which speakers provide evidence for their intended meaning, and listeners use that evidence to infer the speaker's meaning. Probably most animal communication is of the former type, but human linguistic communication is of the latter type. There are several evolutionary questions we can ask about inferential communication. What are the cognitive foundations of inferential communication, and how did they evolve? How does inference affect the cultural evolution of communication systems? Do only humans have inferential communication? In my talk, I will describe the research I have conducted that begins to shed light on these questions.
Selected Publications
- Scott-Phillips, T. C., 2010, Evolutionary psychology and the origins of language, Journal of Evolutionary Psychology 8(4), 289-307.
- Scott-Phillips, T. C. & Kirby, S., 2010, Language evolution in the laboratory, Trends in Cognitive Sciences 14(9), 411-417.
- Scott-Phillips, T. C., Kirby, S. & Ritchie, G. R. S., 2009, Signalling signalhood and the emergence of communication, Cognition 113(2), 226-233.
- Scott-Phillips, T. C., 2008, Defining biological communication, Journal of Evolutionary Biology 21(2), 387-395.
2010 AWARD WINNER: Dr Alex Alvergne
Plenary Title: Variation in human paternal care - ultimate and proximate factors
Abstract: During recent decades, an increase in paternal involvement in childcare in occidental societies has led many to question the role of fathers beyond traditionally prescribed functions of breadwinner, moral authority and masculine role model. Anthropological studies have also highlighted the considerable diversity in fatherhoods between and within human cultural groups. Taking an integrative evolutionary perspective, I address both ultimate and proximate factors underlying the expression of paternal care, and consider the impact of such variation on child development and later reproductive success. According to evolutionary theories of parental investment and kin selection, father investment is expected to vary depending on socio-ecological factors such as paternity uncertainty and mating opportunities. Drawing on data collected from France and Senegal, I argue that paternity uncertainty has constituted an important selective pressure on the use of paternity cues by men (i.e. odour and facial similarity), as well as a manipulation by women of men's perception. Furthermore, I show that the expression of paternal investment is traded-off with mating investment, and mediated through hormonal mechanisms. Finally, I found that the link between paternal investment and fitness-related traits in children depends on the studied population. Overall, this research increases our understanding of the socio-ecological and hormonal factors associated with paternal investment, and highlights the relevance of an evolutionary approach to the study of human behaviour. It also provides a general model to address currently challenging questions such as why father investment has recently experienced a dramatic increase in western societies.
Selected Publications
- Alvergne, A., Faurie, C., Raymond, M., (2009). Father-offspring resemblance predicts paternal investment in humans. Animal Behaviour, 78: 61-69.
- Alvergne, A., Faurie, C. and Raymond, M. (2010). Are parents' perceptions of offspring facial resemblance consistent with actual resemblance? Effects on parental investment. Evolution and Human Behaviour, 31:7-15.
- Alvergne, A. & E. Huchard, et al. (2010). More than friends? Behavioural and genetic aspects of heterosexual associations in wild chacma baboons. Behavioural Ecology and Sociobiology, 64(5):769-781.
- Alvergne, A., Jokela, M., & Lummaa, V. (2010). Personality and reproductive success in a high fertility human population. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, USA, 107(26):11745-11750.
