Judit Mokos

Judit Mokos is a Research Fellow in the Department of Plant Systematics, Ecology and Theoretical Biology at Eötvös Loránd University's Faculty of Science since 2023. An evolutionary and theoretical biologist with strong data science skills, she focuses on human behavior, cooperation, and well-being. She also works as a consultant data scientist for small companies and research groups, leveraging her expertise in R programming and statistical analysis.

Education:

• PhD in Evolutionary and Theoretical Biology, Eötvös Loránd University (2015-2024)
• MSc in Ecology, Evolutionary and Conservation Biology, Eötvös Loránd University (2013-2015)
• BSc in Biology-Literature Teacher, Eötvös Loránd University (2010-2013)

Judit's research spans multiple interdisciplinary areas focusing on why humans are supercooperative in certain situations but not others, why we help strangers but struggle with large-scale problems like climate change, and how social relationships (including with pets) impact human well-being. Her work combines evolutionary biology, data science, and psychology to understand human cooperation, altruism, and responses to global challenges. She employs diverse methodological approaches including experimental designs, statistical modeling, and meta-analyses to investigate questions at the intersection of evolutionary theory and contemporary societal issues.

Her recent publications demonstrate a strong focus on applying evolutionary principles to understand modern human behavior, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic. The articles show consistent interdisciplinary work bridging evolutionary biology, psychology, and public health, with particular attention to altruism, cooperation, stress responses, and pandemic-related behaviors. Her research often employs rigorous statistical methods and frequently involves collaborative work across disciplines.

Scientific Awards:

• Cited on Wikipedia for academic work
• Ambassador of Researchers' Night in Hungary (2018, 2019)
• LifeScience Elevator Speech Festival 1st Place (2016)
• FameLab Hungary Finalist (2017)
• Covid FAQ webpage recommended by Hungarian Academy of Sciences as trustworthy information source

Judit actively supervises students on diverse projects related to human cooperation, diversity in academia, and science communication. Her current supervisees include M. V. (MSc, 2024) working on "Diversity and innovation in academic life," M. Gy. (MSc, 2024) researching "Cooperation and sociopolitics," and S. L. (MSc, in progress) studying "Social dilemmas and data communication." She has taught biostatistics, research methodology, and advanced R programming at Eötvös Loránd University since 2015 and is passionate about interdisciplinary collaboration and science communication.

She is actively involved in several research projects including studies on pet ownership and well-being, corruption in experimental settings, climate cooperation games, and online communication behavior. Her work often incorporates pre-registered study designs to ensure methodological rigor. She also contributes to science communication through her role as a guide at the Budapest Botanical Garden and by developing gamification projects for teaching evolution.