Harvey Whitehouse
/ ScienceSitesChair of Social Anthropology
Director of the Institute of Cognitive and Evolutionary Anthropology
University of Oxford
What He Studies
The evolution of social complexity—as one of the founders of the cognitive science of religion, he is well known for his theory of “modes of religiosity,” which explains how the frequency and emotional intensity of collective rituals influence the scale and structure of religious organizations.
recent articles on Religion & Culture
in the news
To Understand Religion, Think Football
Sacred beliefs likely arose out of prehistoric bonding and rituals.
— Nautilus
Why Your Lucky Underwear And Pre-Game Routine Might Actually Work
One in three students in the U.K. wears lucky underwear. And while you might laugh their habits off, there's a reason that those rituals might actually work.
— Smithsonian.com
Connect
School of Anthropology and Museum Ethnography
51 Banbury Road
Oxford
OX2 6PE
Phone: +44 (0) 1865 274705
Email: harvey.whitehouse@anthro.ox.ac.uk
How did the universe come to exist, how did life begin, and are we alone in the universe?