The Evolution of Human Aggression: Lessons for Today’s Conflicts

The 3rd Annual Barbara L. and Norman C. Tanner Center for Nonviolent Human
Rights Advocacy Forum will be held February 25 to 27, 2009 at the University of
Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, U.S.A..

This forum is organized around four topics that illustrate how evolutionary
theory can inform our understanding of human aggression, and tendencies toward
violence. Can evolutionary theory help us prevent violence? Oral presentations
will be by invited speakers representing a diversity of disciplines including
evolutionary psychology, biological, physical, and cultural anthropology,
archeology, and primatology. The meeting will also include a contributed poster
session (see call for abstracts below). All sessions will be open to the public.

Conflict and conflict resolution in great apes:  This session will explore
power, interpersonal violence, coalitional violence, and reconciliation in our
closest primate cousins. Speakers and discussants in the session include:
	Frans De Waal, who will also give the Wednesday evening keynote lecture, 
	Richard Wrangham, 
	Joan Silk and 
	Michael Plavcan. 

Coalitionary violence and warfare: This session focuses on raiding and warfare
cross-culturally. What factors (cultural and environmental) favor coalitionary
violence? How can we explain behavior that may be beneficial for the group but
costly for participating individuals? These and related questions will be
discussed by:
	Patricia Lambert,
	Pauline Wiessner 
	Steven Pinker, 
	Peter Turchin, 
	Dominic Johnson and 
	Richard Wrangham. 

Hormones and human dominance and aggression: Aggressive behavior is modulated by
hormones. The literature shows that testosterone and its relationship to
dominance and aggression is context-sensitive, affected by threat, competition,
group stability, marriage, and childbearing. This session will consider how
evolution has shaped these hormonal responses. Speakers and discussants in this
session include: 
	John Archer, 
	Aaron Sell and 
	Mark Flinn.  

Domestic violence: We will consider two domains of domestic violence that have
received attention in the evolutionary social science literature: (1) spousal
abuse, control over female sexuality, and homicide; and (2) child abuse and
neglect, with special attention to economic and familial risks.  Speakers and
discussants in this session include: 	
	Martin Daly, 
	Margo Wilson, and 
	Sarah Hrdy.  



Call for Papers - Abstract Submission

The organizers would like to encourage all interested graduate students,
post-doctoral associates, and faculty, whose work addresses human aggression
from an evolutionary perspective, to submit abstracts for poster presentations.
The general theme of the poster session will be the same as that of the oral
presentations – can evolutionary theory inform our understanding of human
aggression and help us prevent violence? Posters, however, may address
additional aspects of human aggression beyond the 4 focus topics of the oral
sessions. Posters will be displayed during an evening session on February 26 and
will form an integral part of the meeting. 

Abstract submission is now open. Abstract submission will be closing on October
24, 2008.

Abstracts for posters should be submitted by email to David Carrier
(carrier@biology.utah.edu). Your abstract should be a maximum of 300 words and
should begin with the abstract title, followed by the names of the authors,
their institutions, and the body of the abstract. When submitting an abstract
please include this information: your full name, title, institution, address,
email address, and a brief statement of your research interests.

Time and space constraints may limit the number of abstracts that we are able to
accept. We will notify you whether or not your abstract is accepted by October
31, 2008.


Contacts Information

Please contact the organizers if you have questions.

George Cheney - Director, Barbara L. and Norman C. Tanner Center for Nonviolent
Human Rights Advocacy, and Department of Communication. Email address -
george.cheney@utah.edu.

Aleta A. Tew Program Manager, Barbara L. and Norman C. Tanner Center for
Nonviolent Human Rights Advocacy. Email address - aleta.tew@csbs.utah.edu.

Victoria Medina - Administrator, Barbara L. and Norman C. Tanner Center for
Nonviolent Human Rights Advocacy. Email address - victoria.medina@csbs.utah.edu.

Elizabeth Cashdan – Department of Anthropology. Email address -  
cashdan@anthro.utah.edu.

Steve Downes – Department of Philosophy. Email address -
s.downes@utah.edu.

David Carrier – Department of Biology. Email address –
carrier@biology.utah.edu.



Additional information can be found at: http://www.anthro.utah.edu/

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