معرفی
Brooke Scelza is a Professor and Vice Chair of Graduate Studies in the Department of Anthropology at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), part of the College of Letters and Science. She holds a Ph.D. from the University of Washington (2008), an M.Ed. from Harvard University, and a B.S. from the University of Michigan. Her research focuses on human behavioral ecology, examining reproductive decision-making, family dynamics, and healthcare access in socioecologically changing environments. Central to her work is the Kunene Rural Health and Demography Project in Namibia, studying how market integration affects health, kinship, and cultural norms.
Scelza’s research interests include life history theory, maternal and child health, and the intersection of evolutionary biology with public health. Her recent work explores medical mistrust in healthcare systems, the role of grandmothers in perinatal care, and the evolutionary basis of reproductive strategies. Funded by the NSF and Wenner Gren Foundation, her projects emphasize interdisciplinary approaches to understanding human adaptation. Awards include a Fulbright Award, recognizing her contributions to cross-cultural research.
Publications highlight studies on extra-pair paternity, paternal investment, and the socioecological drivers of health behaviors. Scelza collaborates internationally, addressing global health challenges through anthropological frameworks. She actively engages in public scholarship, with media coverage in Scientific American, New York Times, and podcasts like Species and Sausage of Science.
