Job Description

Location

Tempe, AZ

Open Date

Nov 11, 2024

Description

Job Details and Essential Duties

The Evolution, Culture and Cognition lab (“Ecco” lab) in the School of Human Evolution and Social Change (SHESC) and Institute of Human Origins (IHO) at Arizona State University is recruiting a Postdoctoral Research Scholar in Evolutionary Anthropology. The position is under the supervision of SHESC/IHO faculty member Thomas Morgan and lasts 12 months. The postdoctoral research scholar will be contributing to a project entitled “Understanding Diverse Intelligences via Diverse Constraints”. This project is a collaboration between Thomas Morgan at ASU and other faculty and postdoctoral researchers at Princeton University and the University of St Andrews.

The successful applicant will be part of a collaborative research team studying the evolution of intelligence (both individual and social), in concert with, and under constraints from, life history. The postdoctoral research associate will be expected to design, create and execute large-scale, online experiments using the experimental platform Dallinger to test hypotheses generated from theoretical work carried out by other team members. The postdoctoral research associate will publish the results of this research in scholarly venues. Additional duties may include organizing and implementing research plans, primary data collection and data analysis, preparation of manuscripts for publication in journals; supervising less senior research staff or interns; attending conferences and seminars, and other duties as assigned.

The Ecco Lab values our cultural and intellectual breadth, and continually strives to foster a welcoming and inclusive environment. We are especially interested in applicants who demonstrate strong commitment to the goals of the ASU Charter.

This is a full-time, fiscal-year, term-limited 1-year position. The anticipated start date is January 1, 2025 but may be earlier or later.

The fiscal year (12-month) salary for this position is $58,656 along with competitive benefits through ASU including health insurance, paid vacation, sick leave, and holidays. The postdoctoral research scholar should be in residence in the greater-Phoenix metropolitan areas during the appointment.

About the Ecco Lab

The Ecco lab is a part of the Adaptation, Behavior, Culture & Society research group (ABC&S), within the School of Human Evolution and Social Change (SHESC) at ASU, and a part of the Institute of Human Origins (IHO), also at ASU. Research carried out within the Ecco lab addresses questions concerning the nature and evolution of the human capacity for culture, cultural evolutionary dynamics and gene-culture coevolution. A diverse range of methods are utilized in order to maximize our understanding of these topics, spanning theory – analytic models, agent-based simulations; experiment – from small-scale lab-based studies to large-scale online studies; as well as historical and philosophical approaches.

The School collaborates extensively with ASU’s Institute for Human Origins ( and the Center for Evolution and Medicine (

About the School of Human Evolution and Social Change

Known for its leadership in innovative education and research, the School of Human Evolution and Social Change includes one of the nation's top-ranked anthropology programs and the largest and most research-productive transdisciplinary anthropology faculty in the nation. Staying true to our four-field anthropological origins means we remain committed to leveraging a long-term, comparative, and holistic perspective on human origins as a way to understand and address complex problems, now and for the future, and a deep concern for community engagement and social justice. In addition to anthropology, our students can earn degrees in global health, museum studies and environmental social science. We are also known for our high-quality study abroad, field school programs and research apprenticeship opportunities for our ~1,000 undergraduate majors and ~200 graduate students.

We offer a dynamic, collegial, and challenging work environment due to the pace of innovation, complex array of research and academic programs, and high-profile initiatives. SHESC is the largest social science unit in The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, ASU's largest college. For complete information, see

About The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences

The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences is the academic heart of Arizona State University, committed to improving communities on a local, national and global scale. We support the professional development and growth of our faculty and staff in their cutting-edge research to advance these aims. Within The College, our faculty engage with a large curious student body, guiding them as they grow into socially aware, critical thinkers and writers able to succeed in a wide range of careers and to address the challenges of the twenty-first century. Advancing the success of our students remains our top priority. To learn more about The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, please visit

About Arizona State University

ASU exemplifies a new prototype for the American public research university. As articulated in the ASU Charter, ASU is a comprehensive public research university, measured not by whom it excludes, but by whom it includes and how they succeed; advancing research and discovery of public value; and assuming fundamental responsibility for the economic, social, cultural and overall health of the communities it serves.

Qualifications

Required Qualifications:

• Ph.D. in cultural evolution, anthropology, evolutionary biology, psychology, computational social science or a related field by the time of appointment.
• Applicants must be within five years of receipt of their Ph.D. to be considered.

Desired Qualifications:

• Knowledge of and experience with:
  • The experimental platform Dallinger,
  • Programming (e.g., Python, HTML, JavaScript, CSS, SQL, R),
  • Data analysis,
  • Experimental design, and
• A demonstrated record of:
  • Research and publication that is relevant to the position,
  • Success working in collaborative teams, and
• Demonstrated commitment to working with faculty, staff, students and communities to advance the principles of the ASU Charter.

Application Instructions

The application deadline is December 11, 2024. Applications will continue to be accepted on a rolling basis for a reserve pool. Applications in the reserve pool may then be reviewed in the order in which they were received until the position is filled. Candidates will be asked to create or use an existing Interfolio Dossier to submit the following application materials:

• A letter of interest describing your research interests and how you meet the required and desired qualifications,

• A current curriculum vitae,

• Up-to-date contact information (including email addresses) for three (3) professional references.

General questions about this position may be directed to Dr. Thomas Morgan at thomas.j.h.morgan@asu.edu.

Application Process

This institution is using Interfolio's Faculty Search to conduct this search. Applicants to this position receive a free Dossier account and can send all application materials, including confidential letters of recommendation, free of charge.

Equal Employment Opportunity Statement

A background check is required for employment. Arizona State University is a VEVRAA Federal Contractor and an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, protected veteran status, or any other basis protected by law.


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