Student Research Overview

Both graduate and undergraduate students in the department frequently acquire experience as researchers by assisting faculty members on research projects, both in the lab and in the field. Students interested in gaining research experience should be in touch with individual professors in order to explore ways that they may collaborate on their projects. Listed below are some of the areas of focus of our faculty. Some students also work independently, collecting data that form the basis of their thesis or other independent project, or develop connections with faculty members of other universities in order to broaden their research horizons.

Faculty members in the Department of Anthropology are actively engaged in a broad variety of research ventures. Funded primarily by a mix of private donors and federal funding agencies, this research generally relies on data collected either in the laboratory or through fieldwork. Geographically, some of the fieldwork occurs in international settings, such as Central America, while we also work in the United States, including the Cincinnati area. The topics of this research are diverse and include:

• Ecology of living and extinct primates
• The use of DNA sequence data to identify genes involved in human adaptation
• Race and visual culture in the contemporary United States
• The study of irrigation and water management
• Settlement patterns in the prehistoric United States
• The use of hunting dogs by native hunters
• The use culture as legal evidence
• The economics of international migration
• Social complexity and identity expression in past societies

The methods we use vary by subdiscipline, but as a department, we share a commitment to a holistic, empirical vision of anthropology that incorporates both qualitative and quantitative analysis.

To learn about research in the department of anthropology, please click on individual faculty Web pages and an overview of past theses by graduate students. We welcome you to be in touch with individual faculty members to learn more about possible research experiences during your time at UC!