The human mind is perhaps the most fascinating, and least understood, product of Darwinian evolution. In this program we will endeavor to understand how the mind functions and why it has come to work in the way that it has. We will study human psychology as modern empirical science has come to understand it, and we will combine that hybrid model with a consideration of the evolutionary path humans have traversed, as well as a deep investigation of those portions of evolutionary theory most relevant to hominid cognition, perception and behavior. Our program will seek to unify important conclusions from multiple schools of thought within psychology as we consider humans from a broadly cross-cultural perspective. We will range from the Jungian to the Cognitive, and from the modern !Kung people of the Kalahari to the ancient Maya of Central America. Our objective is to generate an integrative model of the human mind that can accommodate humans as individuals and as interdependent social beings.

Winter materials will build on content covered in the fall. There will be educational value and intellectual reward for staying in the program both quarters.