Joseph Henrich

Joseph Henrich is the Ruth Moore Professor of Biological Anthropology and chair of the Department of Human Evolutionary Biology at Harvard University . His scholarship applies evolutionary theory to understand the dynamics of culture , cognition , cooperation , and economic decision-making , emphasizing how cultural evolution interacts with genetic and psychological processes to drive human adaptation and societal complexity.

Henrich's research highlights the pivotal role of cumulative cultural knowledge—transmitted through social learning—in enabling humans to outperform other species and innovate beyond innate cognitive limits, as detailed in his book The Secret of Our Success (2016). He has also pioneered critiques of psychological science's overreliance on participants from Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich, and Democratic ( WEIRD ) societies, arguing these groups represent global psychological outliers whose traits, such as individualism and analytical thinking, emerged from unique historical institutions like the Catholic Church's marriage policies. This perspective is elaborated in The WEIRDest People in the World (2020), which traces the cultural origins of Western distinctiveness and its implications for universalist assumptions in behavioral research.

Among his honors, Henrich received the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers in 2004, the Wegner Prize for Theoretical Innovation in 2018, the Hayek Book Prize in 2022 for The WEIRDest People in the World , and the Panmure House Prize in 2023. His fieldwork in regions including Fiji , Peru , and Chile , combined with experimental and computational methods, has advanced understanding of cultural transmission, prestige-based learning, and the evolution of fairness norms.

Joseph Henrich was born in 1968. He initially pursued studies in aerospace engineering as an undergraduate at the University of Notre Dame but developed an interest in anthropology , ultimately earning bachelor's degrees in both anthropology and aerospace engineering there in 1991.

Following his undergraduate education, Henrich worked briefly before advancing to graduate studies in anthropology at the University of California, Los Angeles , where he obtained an MA and a PhD in 1999. His doctoral research laid foundational work in cultural evolution and human behavior , reflecting his early interdisciplinary approach blending engineering precision with anthropological inquiry.

Henrich commenced his academic career in 2002 as an Assistant Professor of Anthropology at Emory University, where he advanced to Associate Professor and received tenure by 2007. During this period, his research involved fieldwork in Peru, Chile, and the South Pacific, contributing to studies on cultural learning and decision-making.

In 2007, Henrich joined the University of British Columbia , assuming the Canada Research Chair in Culture, Cognition, and Evolution . There, he held professorial appointments across anthropology , psychology , and economics , and was granted tenure in these four disciplines, reflecting his interdisciplinary approach. He served as a professor until approximately 2013, also acting as a Senior Fellow in the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research's Institutions, Organizations, and Growth program from 2010 to 2019.

From 2013 to 2014, Henrich held the Peter and Charlotte Schoenenfeld Faculty Fellowship at New York University's Stern School of Business. In 2014, he transitioned to Harvard University as Professor of Human Evolutionary Biology in the Department of Human Evolutionary Biology. He currently occupies the Ruth Moore Professorship of Biological Anthropology , serves as Chair of the department, and as Director of Graduate Studies.