Development and Behaviour Research Group

What We Do

We are an interdisciplinary team of developmental, social, and evolutionary psychologists who investigate the development of cognitive, language, social, emotional, motor and behavioural processes that affect interpersonal, intergroup, and interspecies attitudes, cognition, emotion, and behaviour.

Our Research is Different

As well as directly contributing theory and knowledge to developmental psychology, our work has significant and wide-ranging impacts on real world issues, policy, and practice. Members of our Research Group have received prestigious awards and grants from a range of funding bodies, including ESRC, the National Institute of Health, the Primate Society of Great Britain, the Leakey Foundation. We have also repeatedly won prestigious funding from charities and industry, e.g., from Waltham and MARS. Our group members actively engage in consultancy work for government departments, businesses, and third-sector organisations such as the World Health Organisation, Government departments nationally and internationally, People United, Department for Work and Pensions, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, and the Leadership Foundation for Higher Education. We also organise workshops and hold public talks and events within the community, such as the Summer Scientist for families or stakeholder workshops on safe Animal-assisted Interventions.

Crossing Boundaries

We believe there is clear scientific value in crossing boundaries between psychology and traditionally distinct scientific disciplines such as anthropology, economics, linguistics, ethology, medicine, veterinary medicine, physiology and epidemiology. Our academic staff and community of postgraduate students collaborate with researchers at national and international universities, charities and businesses.

Our research areas include: