I received my doctorate from the University of Bristol after completing an MPhil in biological anthropology at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge and an undergraduate degree in anthropology at the University of Pennsylvania. I am a broadly trained anthropologist with research experience in palaeoarchaeology, human reproductive behaviour, and the evolutionary psychology of human reproductive decision making. My primary research interest is in the variation of the age at first birth in humans, specifically focusing on teenage mothers, and how public health policy and evolutionary theory can be integrated.

My PhD research, which was funded in part by the Gloucestershire Health Authority and the Department of Health, was an empirical investigation into whether teenage motherhood is the result of an evolved reproductive strategy that allows for variation in life history event timings, as predicted by evolutionary anthropological theory. Specifically, I tested the hypothesis that having children at an earlier age may promote lineage survival when the environment is unstable and risky, and personal future is uncertain. In addition, I investigated a possible psychological mechanism linking environment and behaviour in this context. I believe research that links both function and mechanism is the future direction for evolutionary studies of human behaviour, and my research is pushing the boundaries of the field in this direction.

I am keen to promote public understanding of evolutionary theory, particularly how it relates to human behaviour. My work has received widespread press coverage and I am available to provide topical comment or in-depth discussion of topics related to human evolution & behaviour, evolutionary psychology, human sexuality, and teenage pregnancy.

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Selected Publications

JOHNS, S.E., Dickins, T.E. & Clegg, H. T. (2011) Teenage pregnancy and motherhood: How might evolutionary theory inform policy? Journal of Evolutionary Psychology 9:3-19.

JOHNS, S.E. (2011) Perceived environmental risk as a predictor of teenage motherhood in a British population. Health and Place. 17:122-131.

JOHNS, S.E. & Belsky, J. (2007) Life transitions: becoming a parent. In: Salmon, C. & Shackelford T. (eds.), Family relationships: An evolutionary perspective. Oxford University Press. pp. 71-90.

JOHNS S.E. (2004) Subjective life expectancy predicts offspring sex in a contemporary, British population. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London Series B-Biological Sciences 271:S474 -S476.

 

More extensive list of publications

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Teaching Interests

Major: Evolutionary and Biological Anthropology, Evolutionary Psychology, Human Behavioural Ecology, Human Sexual Behaviour.

Minor: Palaeoanthropology, Quantitative Research Methods, History of Evolutionary Theory

 

Programmes Convened

MSc in Evolution and Human Behaviour – Run jointly with the School of Psychology

 

Modules Convened

SE565: Sex, Evolution, and Human Nature

SE533: Project in Anthropological Science

SE855: Research Project (Evolution & Human Behaviour)

SE858: Advanced topics in Human Behaviour

My modules contribute to multiple undergraduate programmes, including the BSc in Anthropology, BSc in Biological Anthropology, BA in Social Anthropology, as well as the MSc in Evolution and Human Behaviour. I also contribute to:

• SE302: Foundations of Human Culture
• SE307: Thinkers and Theories
• SE308: Skills for Anthropology and Conservation
• SE567: Methods in Anthropological Science
• SE570: Current issues in Evolutionary Anthropology
• SE856: Advanced Topics in Evolutionary Anthropology

 

and supervise student research in:

SE533: Project in Anthropological Science

SE855: Research Project (Evolution & Human Behaviour)

 

In 2008 I was a joint recipient (with S. Legge, and N. Newton-Fisher) of a university teaching prize for my role in developing the BSc in Anthropology and BSc in Biological Anthropology programmes.

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I am committed to understanding human reproductive timing and evolved sexual behaviour. During my most recent research period I have amassed a large, detailed data-set - one of the most comprehensive of its kind from the UK. My research was the first to study adolescent pregnancy from an evolutionary perspective, and is yielding new and potentially groundbreaking results. I am in the process of preparing much of this material for publication and exploiting further the untapped potential in this data set. This work has policy implications, specifically for governmental teenage pregnancy strategy (collaborating with Thomas Dickins). I have also conducted research exploring female genital colouration and male mating preferences, relationships between smoking, risk behaviour and mating success (funded by Novartis UK), and primate long bone trauma.

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Francesca Whitehouse, MSc by research. (Completed 2010). 

The menstrual cycle and female-to-female interactions: Explored through olfactory, visual and verbal/auditory communication.

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Director of Learning and Teaching, School of Anthropology and Conservation

In this role, among other duties, I advise members of the School on the preparation of proposals for new modules and new programmes of study and in particular on academic and curricular aspects of such proposals, provide advice to the School Learning & Teaching Committee on whether proposals for new programmes of study are adequate, play a key role in the academic planning of the School, and liaise with Programme Convenors in the School in relation to quality management of programmes.

Committee Member (peer nominated) Biosocial Society. International academic society that works to create synergies between the biological and social sciences that explore human biological and social diversity.

Reviewer: American Journal of Physical Anthropology, International Journal of Epidemiology, Evolution and Human Behaviour, Human Nature, Human Biology, Journal of Biosocial Science, and Proceedings of the Royal Society (B); Grants: Natural Environment Research Council (NERC)

 

Media

Articles about my research and to which I have contributed have been published in New Scientist (feature story and subject of editorial), The Guardian newspaper, The Daily Mail, Nature Online, the Sydney Morning Herald (Australia), The Age (Australia), Hindustan Times (India), The Scotsman, The Times, Pravda (Russia), L’Express (France), The National Post (Canada), Health Magazine (USA), Fit Pregnancy Magazine (USA), Eve Magazine (UK), Pregnancy and Birth Magazine (UK), Stylist Magazine (UK), as well as in a number of local Kent newspapers.

I have given radio interviews to the 'Today Programme' (BBC Radio 4), Radio 5 Live, Radio New Zealand, BBC Gloucester, BBC Swindon, BBC Kent, Radio Dublin, and Radio Australia, and was interviewed for a BBC3 documentary (Zig Zag productions)

I have also worked as a consultant for the Gloucestershire Teenage Pregnancy Unit and the South-West regional teenage pregnancy co-ordinators.

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