Human cultural evolution and behavioral ecology

Research in Cultural Evolution and Behavioral Ecology seeks to understand how human behavior, cognition and culture have been shaped by evolutionary processes — and how culture itself feeds back to influence human evolution. By integrating evolutionary theory, formal modeling, experimental research and long-term fieldwork, IHO scholars in this area explore why humans are uniquely social, cooperative and culturally complex.

This work examines the psychological mechanisms that support cultural learning, communication and decision-making, as well as how these mechanisms interact with population dynamics to generate cultural diversity across societies. Drawing on extensive ethnographic research with hunter-gatherers, pastoralists and small-scale societies around the world, researchers investigate fundamental questions about cooperation, morality, warfare, food sharing, life history strategies and social norms — often in the absence of centralized institutions.

Cultural evolution is studied across multiple timescales, from real-time social learning and cooperation to deep evolutionary history. Archaeological data are used to trace how cultural traits emerge, spread and change over thousands of years, allowing researchers to compare rates of cultural and biological evolution and to better understand humanity’s unique evolutionary trajectory.

This interdisciplinary approach also sheds light on contemporary challenges, including collective action, social conflict and human health. By studying populations with traditional subsistence lifestyles, IHO researchers gain insight into how evolutionary history shapes aging, disease risk and well-being today.

Together, Cultural Evolution and Behavioral Ecology provide a powerful framework for explaining what makes us human — linking culture, biology and behavior to reveal how our past continues to shape our present.