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OUR TEAM AT UCONN
CORE RESEARCHERS
Dimitris Xygalatas, Principal Investigator
Dimitris is an Associate Professor in the departments of Anthropology and Psychological Sciences. His research primarily focuses on cultural practices that soothe, excite, unite and divide humans, such as ritual, sports, and music.
Mohammad Amin Saraei, Graduate Researcher
Mohammad is a graduate student in the Psychology Department at UConn.
He conducts research in the cognitive science of religion, with a focus on Islamic rituals.
Sevgi Demiroglu, Graduate Researcher
Sevgi is a graduate student in Anthropology at UConn. Through ethnographic research on contemporary mourning rituals and application of evolutionary theories in the cognitive science of religion, she studies the complex relationship between pain and religiosity.
Steve S. Medeiros, Graduate Researcher
Steve is a graduate student in Anthropology at UConn, a US Army veteran, and Researcher at The William Joiner Institute for the Study of War and Social Consequences (WJI). His work is focused on sociality and psychological kinship in Ukrainian volunteers during Russia’s invasion.
Meara Geraty, Graduate Researcher
Meara is a graduate student in Psychology at UConn. Her interdisciplinary research focuses on the cognitive science of religion, especially the interrelations between religiosity/spirituality, meaning, and wellbeing, and the evolving nature of religiosity in secular contexts.
Zach Buck, Graduate Researcher
Zach is a graduate student in ecological psychology at UConn. His research focuses on the evolutionary psychology of ritual and religion. His particular interests in these areas include collective behaviour and social cohesion, physiological synchrony, and altered states of consciousness, which he explores through the lenses of behavioral ecology and 4E cognitive science.
Samiksha Pant, Graduate Researcher
Samiksha is a graduate student in Anthropology at UConn. She is interested in the role of ritual practices in mitigating stress and building social capital, especially among vulnerable populations in rural areas.
UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCHERS
Gaby Duana
Bryce Turner
Lila Scroggins
Ademide Ogunsina
Harshita Srivastava
Caitlyn Tavares
ALUMNI
Graduate Researchers
Caitrin Hall
Christopher Manoharan
Lana Delasanta
Michelle Reed
Gabriela Baranowski Pinto
Vitor Profeta
Peter Mano
Siddhesh Kulkarni
Martin Lang
ALUMNI
Undergraduate Researchers
Adriana Vazquez
Audrey Bush
Gail Boahen
Valerie Saykina
Devin Caramma
Mileny
Jonathan Sosa
Katharine Morris
Tova Benson-Tilsen
Kyle Dwyer
Denis Caibal
David Dapaah-Afriyie
Elle Parks
Venoude Valmyr
Victoria Szantyr
Briana Genarelli
Ericka Bailey
Kelsey Faherty
Armani Porter
Sidra Khatri
Evin Bell
Thomas Cariseo
Ryan McGlynn
Abdul Gadoush
Elizabeth Santana
Haley Collins
Min Kim
Celise Brown
Qianqian Yang
Aia Ahmed Kattaya
Rachel Tshonas
Anika Obasiolu
Emily Post
OUR TEAM IN MAURITIUS
RESEARCHERS
Thekishta Beerachee
Alexia Chung Tsien
Lokeshinee Teeluck
Pushkar Puryag
Yakshini Gooransing
Laura Bugwondeen
Lakshana Baldew
Ishina Krishee Tilloo
Fatimah Dowlut
Deepika Langur
ALUMNI
Ourvarshi Gokool
Yashila Devi Ramkalam
Houmayrah Jeeawody
Simi Ragoobur
Tejasvi Balkisson
Yusra Ackbar
Yuthika Rupali Bhowon
Tannishtha Ramkalam
Nirvani Gaya
Nachita Rosun
Varsha D. Ramdhunee
Swarna Anooroop
Visesh Ramjheetun
Charlotte Pierre-Louis
Manesha Soneea
Sharon Ramsawmy
Nethi Chunwan
Priya Tatteea
Mehreen Rughony
Laura Meunier
Shaheen Beeharry
Abhinav Sukhoo
Jenita Girwar
Afiifah Munganee Mea
Avishkar Soneea
Bhavna Ram
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