Jesse Whiteman

Background

About Jesse Whiteman

What could be more interesting than how the mind works? I'm interested in psychology's potential to shed light on deep questions about the human condition (the makeup of the moral sense, the nature of emotions, explanations for prosociality) and potentially improve that condition by understanding the connections between mind and health through interdisciplinary approaches like psychoneuroimmunology. I have several years of research experience in different subfields, including positive psychology, neuropsychology, behavioural neuroscience/psychopharmacology, visual perception/psychophysics, developmental psychology, moral and evolutionary psychology, affective science, and health psychology. Most of these topics are synthesized in my current work, on understanding the Self-Transcendent Emotions (Awe, Compassion, Gratitude), their proximate and ultimate explanations, and their relationships to physical health through immune and endocrine processes. I am highly enthusiastic about teaching psychology, and communicating its best scientific insights and its promise for engendering human progress by illuminating human nature.