Dr. Damian Murray

My primary research interests focus broadly upon how ecological variables influence cross-cultural differences and social behaviour. Disease, for example, has ubiquitously posed a threat to humans throughout their history. It's therefore worth considering the implications that ecological variables such as disease might have for social behaviour, and for the evolution of cultural systems as well. Indeed, some of my recent work shows that disease prevalence predicts cross-cultural differences in personality, sexual behaviours, and value systems. I'm also in the early stages of work investigating other environmental phenomena: Fire, for example, has been integral in human social life for hundreds of thousands of years, being used for heat, food preparation, light, and protection. Humans are thus inherently curious, yet concurrently fearful, of fire. What types of psychological responses, then, might be associated with fire?

After receiving his Ph.D. in Social Psychology from UBC, Dr. Damian Murray now works as an Assistant Professor of Psychology at Tulane University. (website)