I study animals and their sociality. The profound arrogance of our own species requires research that highlights the manifold ways in which we are not 'special,' broadening out from the human experience to recognize the interconnectedness amongst all living beings. Much of my work to date has focused on post-conflict behavior, and specifically resolution strategies like reconciliation that mitigate aggression and other conflicts-of-interest (an inevitable consequence of social life). My most recent research centers on consolation, which is considered a key behavioral marker of socio-emotional capacities like empathy. More specifically, I'm interested in comparative developmental approaches to the study of consolation behavior, results of which often challenge prevailing assumptions about the expression of empathy within and across species. Simultaneously, I have a deep and growing passion for animal ethics, human-animal relations, and the role of ethology (and science more broadly) in the animal turn.

National Geographic: Chimpanzee moms are like us