The Social Ethology Lab studies the lifespan development of social cognition from a comparative perspective.
We are aspirationally transdisciplinary in our methods. Our foundation is an integrated evolutionary, developmental, and biopsychological approach to understanding the individual variation within and across species in social decision making.
TL;DR
We study why different members of the same species make the individual social decisions that they do, in response to both their lifetime experiences and evolutionary pressures.
Undergraduate Research Stars! |
Compassion & Respect |
|
Our research is conducted by the smart, creative, and dedicated undergraduates of Fort Lewis College, the most diverse public liberal arts college in the nation. We are a proudly undergraduate lab at a primarily undergraduate institution.
It is our highest aspiration to facilitate a full college experience for our lab members, both in launching themselves professionally and in finding their academic passions. No matter what your chosen field, we hope to help you find work you love. Taxonomic BreadthThe fundamental unit of sociality is the relationship between parent and offspring. Almost all animals have some (if occasionally exclusively in-ovo) relationship to their offspring and/or involvement with mates, and so our investigation of social behavior takes us all over the cladistic map.
This comparative perspective is a major strength of our research, permitting undergraduates flexibility in their exploration of the field and better informing our understanding of the selective pressures which contribute to the massive diversity of social systems exhibited in the animal kingdom. |
Our work is done out of love and admiration for all creatures. We are dedicated to ensuring that our research is minimally or not at all invasive, and that all participants, human and nonhuman, are treated with respect, compassion, and sensitivity to the needs of the individual.
Join the Lab!Want to get some research experience?
Have a burning question about animals, or a desire to more intimately understand the natural world? Contact [email protected] |
If you keep asking questions, you'll keep getting answers.
- Dr. Valerie Frizzle, The Magic School Bus
The Social Ethology Lab operates out of the Fort Lewis College Psychology Department
on unceded Nuuchiu land
|
PI: Andrew Fulmer, PhD
Wageman Memorial Laboratory Education Business Hall 222 Fort Lewis College, 1000 Rim Drive Durango, Colorado 81301 |
|
|
