POST-DOCTORAL POSITION
in Human Evolutionary Biology
Section Genetics and Environment,
Institute of Evolutionary Sciences,
University of Montpellier, France.

Project:
Evolution of handedness in human populations

Part 1. Social status and handedness
Social status is a fitness component in humans, as in other social species with
dominance relationships. Associations between socio-economic status and
handedness have been found in a western society in a population of children and
in several large cohorts of adults. We propose to investigate this relation in
other cultures, especially in traditional or sub-traditional societies that have
not experienced the demographic transition.

Part 2. Sex and handedness
There are more left-handed men than women, in most societies so far
investigated. Why left-handed women still exist is not well understood, in light
of the advantage found, in fighting interactions, which does not concern women.
One possible explanation is an indirect advantage for women, through their sons,
because there is a maternal component in the inheritance of left-handedness.
This aspect has only been explored theoretically, and requires empirical
evidence.

These two parts are to be completed with other aspects, according to competence
and expertise, e.g. the temporal variation of handedness (through bilateral
asymmetries in past remains), and the investigation of the evolutionary causes
of historical and geographical variations. 

Research team:
Human evolutionary biology
http://www.evolutionhumaine.fr/index_ang.php

Duration:
24 months (including at least 6 months of field work)

Salary:
1,430-1,741 € monthly, net (according to experience)

Candidate:
The candidate should have:
- a phD in Evolutionary Biology or Evolutionary Anthropology,
- some experience with field work, preferably in non-western countries,
- a strong motivation to improve the understanding of human evolution!

Application:

CV, list of publications, names and email addresses of at least two research
scientists able to fully evaluate the candidate, and cover letter should be sent
to Michel Raymond (raymond@isem.univ-montp2.fr) and Charlotte Faurie
(faurie@isem.univ-montp2.fr).

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