Katya Stansfield

Katya Stansfield is a Lecturer and Postdoc Researcher at the University of Vienna's Faculty of Life Sciences, Department of Evolutionary Biology. Her research investigates how functional requirements shape organ evolution, particularly focusing on pelvic biomechanics in humans and midfacial climate adaptation.

Research explores competing evolutionary pressures on the human pelvis related to obstetrical constraints and bipedal locomotion. She employs biomechanical modeling and statistical approaches to analyze pelvic floor dynamics and hip joint forces.

Publications frequently address human evolutionary adaptations, with recent work focused on obstetrical biomechanics and climate-driven morphological changes. Major funding includes FWF Stand-Alone and Lise Meitner grants supporting her investigations into human childbirth evolution.