معرفی
Pascal Boyer is a Professor of Sociocultural Anthropology and Psychology at Washington University in St. Louis, holding the Henry Luce Professorship of Individual and Collective Memory. He holds a PhD from Université de Paris-Nanterre and is affiliated with both the Department of Anthropology and the Department of Psychology. His research integrates experimental and field studies to explore cognitive mechanisms underlying cultural transmission, focusing on topics such as religious concepts, evolutionary psychology, and the interplay between individual and collective memory.
- Education: PhD in Anthropology, Université de Paris-Nanterre
Research interests include cognitive processes in cultural transmission, evolutionary foundations of religious thought, and the development of concepts of agency and personhood. Current projects investigate victim-blaming dynamics, 'wild' religious traditions, and folk-economic beliefs. He has authored influential books such as Religion Explained and Minds Make Societies.
Teaching focuses on courses like Cognition and Culture, Human Evolutionary Psychology, and the Psychological Anthropology of Moral Crusades. Collaborative research includes projects funded by the Templeton Religion Trust examining the persistence of informal religious practices.
