Sheina Lew-Levy
@sheinalew.bsky.social
Associate Professor at @durhampsych.bsky.social. I look at how culture influences children's learning, and how learning makes us human.
Reposted by Sheina Lew-Levy
Childhood is a special time, but it doesn't always look the same from one place to the next. How do children's lives vary from culture to culture? And why?
A listener favorite from our archive, featuring @dorsaamir.bsky.social and @sheinalew.bsky.social!
Listen: disi.org/varieties-of...
A listener favorite from our archive, featuring @dorsaamir.bsky.social and @sheinalew.bsky.social!
Listen: disi.org/varieties-of...
August 12, 2026 at 4:42 PM
Childhood is a special time, but it doesn't always look the same from one place to the next. How do children's lives vary from culture to culture? And why?
A listener favorite from our archive, featuring @dorsaamir.bsky.social and @sheinalew.bsky.social!
Listen: disi.org/varieties-of...
A listener favorite from our archive, featuring @dorsaamir.bsky.social and @sheinalew.bsky.social!
Listen: disi.org/varieties-of...
Reposted by Sheina Lew-Levy
I have just been informed I'll be writing an Elements in the 'Psychology of Religion' series entitled 'Santa Claus and Religious Cognition'.
To the best of my knowledge, it'll be the first serious, long-form treatment of the psychology of Santa in Children.
www.cambridge.org/core/publica...
To the best of my knowledge, it'll be the first serious, long-form treatment of the psychology of Santa in Children.
www.cambridge.org/core/publica...
Psychology of Religion
Welcome to Cambridge Core
www.cambridge.org
July 28, 2026 at 12:38 PM
I have just been informed I'll be writing an Elements in the 'Psychology of Religion' series entitled 'Santa Claus and Religious Cognition'.
To the best of my knowledge, it'll be the first serious, long-form treatment of the psychology of Santa in Children.
www.cambridge.org/core/publica...
To the best of my knowledge, it'll be the first serious, long-form treatment of the psychology of Santa in Children.
www.cambridge.org/core/publica...
Reposted by Sheina Lew-Levy
Great apes reassure one another to maintain the peace
Our new study shows that friendly touch before stressful events, like embracing, patting and even kissing, promotes tolerance and peace in chimpanzees and bonobos.
Some BBC coverage 🙂 open-access paper below!
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Our new study shows that friendly touch before stressful events, like embracing, patting and even kissing, promotes tolerance and peace in chimpanzees and bonobos.
Some BBC coverage 🙂 open-access paper below!
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Great Apes kiss and cuddle to keep the peace, says study
Hugging before stressful events may be an ancient way of building trust, say scientists studying apes.
www.bbc.co.uk
July 22, 2026 at 8:37 PM
Great apes reassure one another to maintain the peace
Our new study shows that friendly touch before stressful events, like embracing, patting and even kissing, promotes tolerance and peace in chimpanzees and bonobos.
Some BBC coverage 🙂 open-access paper below!
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Our new study shows that friendly touch before stressful events, like embracing, patting and even kissing, promotes tolerance and peace in chimpanzees and bonobos.
Some BBC coverage 🙂 open-access paper below!
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Reposted by Sheina Lew-Levy
A little example of children's peer culture in the wild: my 5-year-old son and his classmates worked together to make these (truly stunning) pieces of art. I asked to take them home & frame them. To quote Picasso: "It took me four years to paint like Raphael, but a lifetime to paint like a child."
July 23, 2026 at 3:48 PM
A little example of children's peer culture in the wild: my 5-year-old son and his classmates worked together to make these (truly stunning) pieces of art. I asked to take them home & frame them. To quote Picasso: "It took me four years to paint like Raphael, but a lifetime to paint like a child."
Reposted by Sheina Lew-Levy
"If people wanted you to write warmly about them, they should have behaved better." -- Anne Lamott
July 12, 2026 at 6:06 PM
"If people wanted you to write warmly about them, they should have behaved better." -- Anne Lamott
Reposted by Sheina Lew-Levy
A recent paper by Sheina Lew-Levy & @dorsaamir.bsky.social highlights the vital role of children in human cultural evolution. @katiemcauliffe.bsky.social and I argue that the same is true in other species. Youngsters are a powerful cultural force! tinyurl.com/2v75zevc @uniexecec.bsky.social
The role of juveniles in animal culture | Behavioral and Brain Sciences | Cambridge Core
The role of juveniles in animal culture - Volume 49
tinyurl.com
July 8, 2026 at 12:00 PM
A recent paper by Sheina Lew-Levy & @dorsaamir.bsky.social highlights the vital role of children in human cultural evolution. @katiemcauliffe.bsky.social and I argue that the same is true in other species. Youngsters are a powerful cultural force! tinyurl.com/2v75zevc @uniexecec.bsky.social
Reposted by Sheina Lew-Levy
The full treatment (article, commentaries, and our response) can be found here 👇🏼
41b0d2e6-435c-465c-b32a-535b7d25ad01.usrfiles.com
July 6, 2026 at 2:17 PM
The full treatment (article, commentaries, and our response) can be found here 👇🏼
Reposted by Sheina Lew-Levy
On a personal note, this was one of my favorite scientific experiences to date; the BBS format remains unrivaled in its ability to stimulate fruitful discussion, and we are immensely grateful to the commentators who took the time to read & respond to our work.
July 6, 2026 at 2:09 PM
On a personal note, this was one of my favorite scientific experiences to date; the BBS format remains unrivaled in its ability to stimulate fruitful discussion, and we are immensely grateful to the commentators who took the time to read & respond to our work.
Reposted by Sheina Lew-Levy
When we consider children in cultural evolution, we tend to cast them as recipients of adult culture. In our BBS target article, @sheinalew.bsky.social & I argued there's more: through 'peer cultures', children actively drive cultural adaptation. Our final paper + a rich set of responses is out now!
Children as agents of cultural adaptation | Behavioral and Brain Sciences | Cambridge Core
Children as agents of cultural adaptation - Volume 49
www.cambridge.org
July 6, 2026 at 2:06 PM
When we consider children in cultural evolution, we tend to cast them as recipients of adult culture. In our BBS target article, @sheinalew.bsky.social & I argued there's more: through 'peer cultures', children actively drive cultural adaptation. Our final paper + a rich set of responses is out now!
Reposted by Sheina Lew-Levy
This is cultural suicide and intellectual vandalism. In an era where humanities-illiterate tech bros have unearned god-like powers, we need historians, philosophers, ethicists, classicists more than ever.
June 30, 2026 at 6:32 AM
This is cultural suicide and intellectual vandalism. In an era where humanities-illiterate tech bros have unearned god-like powers, we need historians, philosophers, ethicists, classicists more than ever.
Reposted by Sheina Lew-Levy
Check out our 🌟new paper🌟 on observational data collection in children through adolescence
Such methods can capture complexity & richness of experiences across diverse contexts, something that is missing from a lot of developmental psychology!
Open-access: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
Such methods can capture complexity & richness of experiences across diverse contexts, something that is missing from a lot of developmental psychology!
Open-access: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
As part of our ESRC-funded project on age-based imitation, we have produced a methods paper reflecting on naturalistic observations of children and adolescents in diverse contexts, detailing methods, challenges and recommendations doi.org/10.1002/icd....
Naturalistic Observations of Children and Adolescents in Diverse Contexts: Methods, Challenges and Recommendations
The understanding of child development benefits from varied research approaches, including those that reflect the complexity of children's experiences across diverse and real-world contexts. This art...
doi.org
June 16, 2026 at 6:07 PM
Check out our 🌟new paper🌟 on observational data collection in children through adolescence
Such methods can capture complexity & richness of experiences across diverse contexts, something that is missing from a lot of developmental psychology!
Open-access: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
Such methods can capture complexity & richness of experiences across diverse contexts, something that is missing from a lot of developmental psychology!
Open-access: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
Reposted by Sheina Lew-Levy
We conclude by proposing a @manybabies.org -esque "ManyObservations" collaboration. Please get in touch if interested!
June 16, 2026 at 7:22 AM
We conclude by proposing a @manybabies.org -esque "ManyObservations" collaboration. Please get in touch if interested!
Reposted by Sheina Lew-Levy
We hope this will be useful addition to any developmental psychology researchers and/or educators wanting to understand more about the benefits and approaches within naturalistic observations.
June 16, 2026 at 7:22 AM
We hope this will be useful addition to any developmental psychology researchers and/or educators wanting to understand more about the benefits and approaches within naturalistic observations.
Reposted by Sheina Lew-Levy
We draw on our recent experience of a naturalistic video observation study of children and adolescents in Scotland, the Republic of Congo, and Chinese-Americans in Seattle USA involving a significant amount of local collaboration and partnership @sheinalew.bsky.social @jing-xu.bsky.social
June 16, 2026 at 7:22 AM
We draw on our recent experience of a naturalistic video observation study of children and adolescents in Scotland, the Republic of Congo, and Chinese-Americans in Seattle USA involving a significant amount of local collaboration and partnership @sheinalew.bsky.social @jing-xu.bsky.social
Reposted by Sheina Lew-Levy
As part of our ESRC-funded project on age-based imitation, we have produced a methods paper reflecting on naturalistic observations of children and adolescents in diverse contexts, detailing methods, challenges and recommendations doi.org/10.1002/icd....
Naturalistic Observations of Children and Adolescents in Diverse Contexts: Methods, Challenges and Recommendations
The understanding of child development benefits from varied research approaches, including those that reflect the complexity of children's experiences across diverse and real-world contexts. This art...
doi.org
June 16, 2026 at 7:22 AM
As part of our ESRC-funded project on age-based imitation, we have produced a methods paper reflecting on naturalistic observations of children and adolescents in diverse contexts, detailing methods, challenges and recommendations doi.org/10.1002/icd....
Reposted by Sheina Lew-Levy
'It was not a huge surprise to find myself in the Epstein files...'
My investigation into the scientists bewitched by money and the dilettante superficiality of Jeffrey Epstein's need to be near clever men.
newhumanist.org.uk/articles/a-t...
My investigation into the scientists bewitched by money and the dilettante superficiality of Jeffrey Epstein's need to be near clever men.
newhumanist.org.uk/articles/a-t...
A twisted breed
Jeffrey Epstein attempted to gather the best minds of science around him. His interests were rooted in a perverse, eugenic fantasy
newhumanist.org.uk
June 12, 2026 at 6:36 AM
'It was not a huge surprise to find myself in the Epstein files...'
My investigation into the scientists bewitched by money and the dilettante superficiality of Jeffrey Epstein's need to be near clever men.
newhumanist.org.uk/articles/a-t...
My investigation into the scientists bewitched by money and the dilettante superficiality of Jeffrey Epstein's need to be near clever men.
newhumanist.org.uk/articles/a-t...
🚨 In the first publication from our ESRC-funded project on age-based imitation, we asked parents their views on what and how children in four communities should learn from peers and adults.
www.frontiersin.org/journals/psy...
www.frontiersin.org/journals/psy...
Frontiers | Parental perspectives on children’s social learning in four cultures
Social learning is key to the accumulation and transmission of cultural knowledge that underpins human evolutionary success. Cultural context is critical for...
www.frontiersin.org
June 11, 2026 at 7:09 AM
🚨 In the first publication from our ESRC-funded project on age-based imitation, we asked parents their views on what and how children in four communities should learn from peers and adults.
www.frontiersin.org/journals/psy...
www.frontiersin.org/journals/psy...
Reposted by Sheina Lew-Levy
Our new commentary is out: "More than the sum of its sexes" — on embodied capital & age-structured labor in forager economies.
Big thanks to Venkataraman et al. for their excellent "Man the Hunter" piece that clarifies much. Link: www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Big thanks to Venkataraman et al. for their excellent "Man the Hunter" piece that clarifies much. Link: www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
More than the sum of its sexes: functional constraints, embodied capital, and age-structured labor in human forager economies
www.sciencedirect.com
May 18, 2026 at 5:05 PM
Our new commentary is out: "More than the sum of its sexes" — on embodied capital & age-structured labor in forager economies.
Big thanks to Venkataraman et al. for their excellent "Man the Hunter" piece that clarifies much. Link: www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Big thanks to Venkataraman et al. for their excellent "Man the Hunter" piece that clarifies much. Link: www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Reposted by Sheina Lew-Levy
First real post on the new blog!
If you follow human genetics, you've likely of "missing heritability". If you look at twins to estimate heritability, you get values much larger than what molecular genomic methods produce. IQ, for example, goes from 50-80% heritability to 10-15%. Which is right?
If you follow human genetics, you've likely of "missing heritability". If you look at twins to estimate heritability, you get values much larger than what molecular genomic methods produce. IQ, for example, goes from 50-80% heritability to 10-15%. Which is right?
May 18, 2026 at 3:20 PM
First real post on the new blog!
If you follow human genetics, you've likely of "missing heritability". If you look at twins to estimate heritability, you get values much larger than what molecular genomic methods produce. IQ, for example, goes from 50-80% heritability to 10-15%. Which is right?
If you follow human genetics, you've likely of "missing heritability". If you look at twins to estimate heritability, you get values much larger than what molecular genomic methods produce. IQ, for example, goes from 50-80% heritability to 10-15%. Which is right?
Reposted by Sheina Lew-Levy
Thanks to the organisers of @ces2026.bsky.social : @anthrosarah.bsky.social , @zhgarfield.com , @matcharbonneau.bsky.social and @edseabright.bsky.social plus their student helpers for organising an amazing conference
May 13, 2026 at 7:29 PM
Thanks to the organisers of @ces2026.bsky.social : @anthrosarah.bsky.social , @zhgarfield.com , @matcharbonneau.bsky.social and @edseabright.bsky.social plus their student helpers for organising an amazing conference
Reposted by Sheina Lew-Levy
Very proud of my PhD student Alexes Mes for her first archaeology paper where she has developed a novel Bayesian spatiotemporal model for estimating arrival times using 14C dates authors.elsevier.com/sd/article/S...
May 12, 2026 at 8:13 PM
Very proud of my PhD student Alexes Mes for her first archaeology paper where she has developed a novel Bayesian spatiotemporal model for estimating arrival times using 14C dates authors.elsevier.com/sd/article/S...
This is a REALLY useful guide
Are you new or recent faculty, and are you attending CES/HBES. Some thoughts:
gavinbuckingham.wordpress.com/2024/10/09/a...
gavinbuckingham.wordpress.com/2024/10/09/a...
A guide to attending conferences for new faculty (guest post by Dr Rohan Kapitany)
I’ve written about conferencing as PhD student or postdoc, but haven’t really given much thought to how this world changes when you become a lecturer. Thankfully, I’ve been lucky …
gavinbuckingham.wordpress.com
May 10, 2026 at 5:14 PM
This is a REALLY useful guide
Reposted by Sheina Lew-Levy
Coming out in a couple of weeks. 30k new words!
The new, updated and thoroughly revised 10th anniversary edition of @adamrutherford.bsky.social’s brilliant book. Written with such clarity, insight and brio!
May 9, 2026 at 1:53 PM
Coming out in a couple of weeks. 30k new words!